If you and your neighbour can't agree about fencing work, the law says you have to follow a set process. Either you or your neighbour can serve (formally give) a Fencing Notice. If you still can't reach an agreement after a month has passed, you or your neighbour can apply to the Local Court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for Fencing Orders.
You could also try mediation, either before a Fencing Notice is served, or after.
If you and your neighbour can't agree about fencing work because you disagree about where the common boundary between your properties is, either of you can serve a Boundary Notice.
What is mediation?
Sometimes you and your neighbour may not be able to agree about fencing work. Mediation is an informal way of solving a problem. It may help you and your neighbour resolve your fencing dispute without the need to go to court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).
Mediation is a process where an independent person, called a 'mediator', helps people in a dispute to reach agreement.
Mediation is confidential. A mediator does not make a decision for you and will not decide who is right or wrong. A mediator cannot give you legal advice. The mediator will try to help you and your neighbour resolve your dispute by letting you each have your say and then talking to you to work out what things you and your neighbour can agree on.
The advantage of mediation is that if you can reach an agreement with your neighbour, you will not have to go to court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT).
Where can you find a mediator?
Community Justice Centres (CJCs) provide free mediation services throughout New South Wales, that can help you talk to your neighbour and work out a solution. CJCs regularly mediate disputes about fences, as well as disputes about other neighbour issues such as trees, noise, pets and access to land.
You can find CJC contact details on the CJC website. You can contact a CJC by telephone, fax, letter or email.
There are also many private mediators that will conduct mediation
What happens in a CJC mediation?
When one neighbour contacts a CJC about a dispute, the CJC will contact the other neighbour to try and organise a time and a place that suits both neighbours to talk about the dispute.
The mediation involves two mediators. The mediators will usually ask each neighbour to talk about their concerns. Each person will have the chance to talk without being interrupted. The mediators will then help the neighbours to discuss their concerns. The mediators will usually meet with the parties separately. Everyone will then come together to continue talking about the issues in dispute. If the neighbours agree, the mediator may write a record of the agreement reached.
Agreement is reached in over 80% of CJC mediations. Any agreement that is reached at a CJC mediation will generally only be enforceable if you and your neighbour agree that it is a binding agreement.
For more information, see the CJC website or telephone a mediation adviser at a CJC to talk about your dispute.
Do my neighbour and I have to go to mediation?
You do not have to go to mediation before serving a Fencing Notice, but it is a very good idea to try mediation.
Mediation is your chance to come to an agreement that both you and your neighbour can have some control over. If the case goes to the Local Court or NCAT then the magistrate or the tribunal member will make the decision about what fencing work should be done, not you.
If you have tried mediation but you still cannot agree with your neighbour and you want to get fencing work done, the next step is to serve a Fencing Notice.
Tried mediation and still can’t agree?
If you and your neighbour have tried to talk and you still can’t agree about fencing work, the law says you have to follow a set process. Either you or your neighbour can serve (formally give) a Fencing Notice. If you still can’t reach agreement after a month has passed, you or your neighbour can apply to the Local Court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for Fencing Orders. For more information see Fencing orders.
What is a fencing notice?
A Fencing Notice is the first step in the legal process to ask for an order for fencing work to be done. If you want to serve your neighbour with a Fencing Notice there is certain information you must include in the notice. If you receive a Fencing Notice from your neighbour you will need to think about how you are going to respond.
How do I give my neighbour a fencing notice?
If you and your neighbour have tried to talk and you still can’t agree about fencing work, you can serve a Fencing Notice on your neighbour. This is a formal written notice to your neighbour that says that you plan on building, fixing or replacing a fence, and asks them to contribute to the costs.
A Fencing Notice is the first step in the legal process to ask for an order for fencing work to be done.
There is no standard form you need to fill out when giving a Fencing Notice to your neighbour, but there are certain things you need to make sure you include in the Fencing Notice.
If you give your neighbour a Fencing Notice and, after one month passes, you still can’t agree (or your neighbour doesn’t respond to the Fencing Notice), either of you can apply to the Local Court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for a Fencing Order. For more information, see Fencing orders.
For more information on preparing your Fencing Notice and the things you must include, go to Step by step guide - Preparing a fencing notice.
Have you received a Fencing Notice from your neighbour?
A Fencing Notice is a formal written notice from your neighbour that says that they plan on building, fixing or replacing a fence and want you to contribute to the costs.
If your neighbour has given you a Fencing Notice, or you have received one by post, it is a good idea to contact your neighbour to discuss the proposed fencing work.
If you agree with the fencing work, you and your neighbour can put your agreement in writing. For more information, see What if we agree?.
If you do not agree with the fencing work your neighbour wants to do, you can try and negotiate an agreement. If you need some help coming to an agreement, you can contact a Community Justice Centre (CJC) and arrange mediation.
If you do not talk to your neighbour or can’t come to an agreement, after one month, either you or your neighbour may apply to the Local Court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for a Fencing Order. If you have received an Application for a Fencing Order, see Fencing orders.
If you and your neighbour can’t agree about fencing work because you disagree about where the common boundary between your properties is, either of you can serve a Boundary Notice. For more information see Boundaries.
Sometimes when a dividing fence needs to be built, repaired, or replaced, there is also a dispute about where the boundary is between two properties.
If you and your neighbour want to do fencing work, but can't agree on where the common boundary line between your properties is, either of you can:
- serve a 'Boundary Notice' on the other (if the disagreement relates to proposed fencing work)
- apply to the Registrar General for a Determination of Title Boundary (for any type of boundary dispute).
For more information, see Boundaries.
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Time Limit
If you or your neighbour serve a Fencing Notice and, after one month passes, you still can’t agree (or if there is no response to the Fencing Notice), either of you can apply to the Local Court or the NSW Civil and Administrative Tribunal (NCAT) for a Fencing Order. For more information, see Fencing Orders.
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