Gardening guru Jamie Durie in million-dollar legal fight over hotel project
Gardening guru Jamie Durie is locked in a legal fight with a Melbourne property developer over a “conceptual landscape design” worth close to $1 million, but the developer claims Durie’s plans weren’t up to scratch.
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EXCLUSIVE: Celebrity gardening guru Jamie Durie is taking legal action against a Melbourne-based property developer, claiming he is owed almost $1m for a “conceptual bespoke design” for a luxury hotel project in Queensland.
Durie Design Pty Ltd, of which Durie is the sole director, is facing off against Chiodo Corporation Operations Pty Ltd over an alleged breach of contract relating to property design concepts and landscape designs created for the Port Douglas Fairmont Hotel project.
However, the developer claims the designs were not up scratch and needed significant changes.
Chiodo Corporation Operations, led by director Paul Chiodo, is building the hotel, which will be managed by the Accor Group.
Durie’s Durie Design company was employed in December 2019, via a Professional Services Agreement, to come up with the conceptual, or base, design for the resort.
In an affidavit filed in the Victorian Supreme Court, Durie claims he is owed $905,374.18 for the conceptual design and other related work as part of Phase 1 of the hotel project.
He has already received $270,132.33 for the work but claims he has not had invoices paid since February despite promises that the payments would be made.
Durie says he was not notified of any issue with the invoices before Chiodo Corporation Operations slapped Durie Design with a Notice of Dispute on May 26, 2020.
On June 1, 2020 Durie Design returned fire, issuing the company a Revocation of Licence to use or keep the design concepts.
In an affidavit Paul Chiodo questioned the quality and value of the work done by Durie Design for the project and said that Durie Design had “claimed and been paid more than it was contractually entitled.”
“The vast majority of the documentation provided by the plaintiff as at 10 April 2020 did not meet the defendant’s requirements and required significant amendment to meet the requirements of the Accor Group,” Chiodo said in his affidavit.
“It was of very little value in terms of what was to be provided under the contract …. notwithstanding that the defendant has paid to the plaintiff $270,132.40 under the contract to date, such representing approximately 20 per cent of the Phase 1 contracted sum.”
The action was originally filed in the New South Wales Supreme Court but was transferred to the Victorian Supreme Court in mid-August.
On Friday the parties made positive steps towards resolving their dispute.
“The matter is currently scheduled in the Supreme Court of Victoria, however the parties have had positive and productive discussions and are working on the details of a settlement agreement and an expanded engagement that will see Durie Design not only continue its role with the Fairmont Port Douglas Hotel, but also expand its partnership to other hotel projects in the Chiodo portfolio,” they said in a joint statement.
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