Client Architect Agreements
Client Architect Agreements
The agreement between you and your client is the foundation of every commission. Advice, review and drafting of Client Architect Agreements for Australian architects, from a solicitor who is also a registered architect.
A Client Architect Agreement is the contract that sets out the terms on which you provide architectural services to your client. It records what you will do, how variations to that scope are handled, how and when you are paid, how far your liability extends, and who owns the copyright in your work. It is the single document that most determines whether a commission runs smoothly or turns into a dispute.
A written client agreement is also a professional requirement. In every Australian state and territory the codes that govern registered architects require a written agreement to be in place before architectural services are provided. You can start from the Australian Institute of Architects Client Architect Agreement (the current version is CAA2024), adopt a registration board short form, or have an agreement tailored to how your practice actually works. Each path has trade-offs, and the right one depends on the size of your practice and the projects you take on.
Christopher Larcos advises architects on their own agreements, not only on the building contracts between owners and builders. Because he is a dual-qualified solicitor and registered architect, he reads the agreement from both sides at once: the commercial and professional position of the practice, and the law that decides whether the terms hold up.
Client Architect Agreement or building contract?
The instrument in the enquiry is often confused with the building contract. They are different documents, and each needs to be right.
Client Architect Agreement
- The appointment between the architect and the client.
- Governs the architectural services: scope, fees, liability, copyright and moral rights.
- The architect is the consultant engaged by the client.
- Standard forms include the Institute CAA2024 and registration board short forms.
Building contract
- The agreement between the owner and the builder.
- Governs the construction work: progress payments, variations, defects and completion.
- Often an ABIC contract, administered by the architect as contract administrator.
- Tailored through Special Conditions rather than by editing the standard form.
Both agreements can sit on the same project. This page is about the first: your appointment. For the building contract between owner and builder, see the ABIC Special Conditions work.
What a review or tailored agreement covers
Whether you bring an existing agreement or start from a standard form, these are the terms that decide how well it protects you.
Scope of services and variations
A clear description of the services you are providing, the stages they cover, and a workable mechanism for charging additional services when the client asks for more. Scope creep is one of the most common reasons an architect loses money on a job.
Fees, invoicing and suspension
How your fee is calculated, when it is invoiced, and what happens when payment is late, including a clear right to suspend services for non-payment rather than continuing to work unpaid.
Limitation of liability
A limitation of liability set at a level your professional indemnity insurance actually supports, so a claim does not expose you beyond your cover. This needs to be read together with your policy, not drafted in isolation.
Copyright and moral rights
Who owns the copyright in your drawings and design, what licence the client receives and on what conditions, and how moral rights are dealt with. Getting this wrong can cost a practice its most valuable asset.
Dispute resolution and termination
A sensible path for resolving disagreements, and clear rights for either party to bring the engagement to an end, so a breakdown in the relationship does not become an open-ended liability.
Consumer law and residential clients
Where your client is an individual having work done on their home, the Australian Consumer Law and residential building legislation shape what the agreement can and cannot do. Terms that are fine for a commercial client may not hold for a homeowner.
Advice for your stage of practice
The agreement that suits a sole practitioner is not the one a growing practice or an overseas firm needs. Start where you are.
Client Architect Agreements for a Solo Practice
Setting up on your own means the client agreement is now yours to get right. Here is what matters most when you are a sole practitioner, and where early advice pays for itself.
Read moreClient Architect Agreements for a Growing Practice
As a practice grows, one signed form is no longer enough. Consistency, sub-consultants, novation and client-side terms all start to matter. Here is where a growing practice needs its agreements to keep up.
Read moreClient Architect Agreements for Overseas Architects Entering Australia
Bringing your practice to Australia means more than opening a project. Your client agreement has to work under Australian law. Here is what changes, and what to adapt before you take on local work.
Read moreCommon questions about Client Architect Agreements
Do you advise architects on their own Client Architect Agreements?
Yes. Christopher advises architects on the agreements that govern their own engagements, including reviewing an existing agreement, tailoring a standard form, or drafting a new one. This is separate from advising owners and builders on construction contracts, and it draws directly on his dual qualification as a solicitor and registered architect.
Do I need a written Client Architect Agreement?
Yes. In every Australian state and territory, the codes that govern registered architects require a written agreement with the client before architectural services are provided. Beyond the professional requirement, a written agreement is what fixes your scope, protects your fees, and limits your liability, so it is worth getting right rather than treating as a formality.
Can I just use the standard Institute agreement without changes?
You can, and for many engagements the Australian Institute of Architects CAA2024 is a sound starting point. Whether it suits a particular commission depends on the project, the client, and your insurance. A short review can confirm the standard form is appropriate, or identify the few changes worth making, before you commit to terms you will be held to.
What is the difference between a Client Architect Agreement and a building contract?
A Client Architect Agreement is between the architect and the client and governs the provision of architectural services. A building contract, such as an ABIC contract, is between the owner and the builder and governs the construction work. On many projects the architect administers the building contract while also being engaged under a separate Client Architect Agreement. They are distinct instruments and each needs to be right.
Get your Client Architect Agreement right
Whether you are setting up, scaling, or bringing a practice to Australia, get advice on the agreement that underpins every commission from a solicitor who is also a registered architect.
Advice from a solicitor and architect
- Dual-qualified solicitor and registered architect
- Fellow of the Australian Institute of Architects (FRAIA)
- 40+ years in the construction industry
- Advises architects, owners, builders and consultants