A building certifier's contractual duty to exercise due care and skill is informed by the statutory scheme under the Building Act 2004 (ACT), and the existence of statutory warranties or other remedies available to the owner against the builder does not qualify the certifier's obligations. The cost of remedying building defects is causally connected to the certifier's breach in issuing stage certificates, because the relevant breach is the failure to exercise the regulatory power to decline certification, not the builder's antecedent defective work. Apportionment under ss 140-141 of the Building Act is unavailable where only one defendant remains following settlement. A plaintiff cannot recover damages for loss of rental income where the evidence shows the property was intended for owner-occupation.
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