TCC’s judgment in Martlet v Mulalley, a cladding fire safety dispute – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘Cladding disputes have been ubiquitous in recent years. They are a consequence of the tragic fire at Grenfell Tower in June 2017, which led to a wave of inspections, investigations and scrutiny across the UK as building owners sought to ascertain whether or not their buildings were similarly defective. That process has resulted in numerous disputes relating to all sorts of different buildings – whether residential or commercial, old or new, publicly owned or private developments – which have kept practitioners extremely busy over the past five years.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 28th July 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Fire safety ruling has implications for cladding disputes – OUT-LAW.com

‘Construction companies contracted to design and build cladding systems for buildings may have to pick up the cost of replacing those systems in light of a new ruling by the High Court in London.’

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OUT-LAW.com, 25th July 2022

Source: www.pinsentmasons.com

How far does an interim valuation adjudication bind determination of the final account? – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted July 11th, 2022 in construction industry, dispute resolution, news, precedent by tracey

‘I was lucky enough to be asked to give a recent case law update lecture for the Adjudication Society. At the end one of the delegates asked a very sensible question, namely to what extent do matters decided by an adjudicator concerning an interim valuation bind later valuations. It’s an issue that I’ve been asked about before, and it’s also one of those that can promote polarising debate, with some extreme positions taken.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 5th July 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

FTH v Varis Developments – adjudication and insolvency meet head on again – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘In its decision in Bresco v Lonsdale, the Supreme Court confirmed that insolvent companies have the statutory and contractual right to adjudicate construction disputes, even if that claim is affected by insolvency set-off.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog , 29th June 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Adjudicator reaches decision in “procedurally unjust manner” so not enforced – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘Sometimes it feels that, as an adjudicator, you are damned if you do and are also damned if you don’t. In this case – Liverpool CC v Vital Infrastructure Asset Management (Viam) Ltd (In Administration) – it was both what the adjudicator did do and what he didn’t do that led the judge to issue a declaration that his decision was unenforceable. But how did the judge, HHJ Stephen Davies, arrive at this point?’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 21st June 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

CMA provisionally finds construction firm cartels rigged £150m of contracts – The Independent

Posted June 24th, 2022 in competition, construction industry, contracts, fines, news, ombudsmen by tracey

‘A group of 10 construction firms illegally colluded to rig bids for £150 million of major contracts, according to provisional findings by the UK competition watchdog.’

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The Independent, 24th June 2022

Source: www.independent.co.uk

The obligation to pay a notified sum where the contractor is insolvent – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted June 17th, 2022 in construction industry, enforcement, insolvency, news by tracey

‘The general rule created by section 111 of the Construction Act 1996 is well known: in the absence of a pay less notice, the notified sum is to be paid without set-off or deduction. Although this is capable of causing problems for an employer in the short term, any overpayments can usually be corrected in future payment cycles (whether interim or final) or by a true value adjudication (following S&T (UK) Ltd v Grove Developments Ltd).’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 15th June 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Tort claims for economic loss on construction projects – Avantage v WSP – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted June 17th, 2022 in construction industry, duty of care, negligence, news by tracey

‘Construction claims usually arise out of a breach of contract, because it is easier to establish liability than under a tortious claim. However, where there is no contract or the contractual limitation period has expired, or a contracting party is insolvent or is uninsured, parties may have no choice but to bring a claim in tort.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog , 14th June 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Research Briefing: Leasehold high-rise flats: Who pays for fire safety work? – House of Commons Library

‘This briefing considers debate about responsibility for paying for fire safety works on blocks of flats in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire. It covers provisions in the Building Safety Act 2022.’

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House of Commons Library, 9th June 2022

Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk

Experts on Trial – 4KBW

‘Chris Bryden and Georgia Whiting write in the April edition of Construction Law, examining case law surrounding the role of expert witnesses, which suggests a worrying trend towards a loosening of the established principles of how experts should behave, and are instructed.’

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4KBW, 4th May 2022

Source: www.4kbw.co.uk

Council prosecution sees building materials company hit with £400k fine for health and safety offence – Local Government Lawyer

Posted May 17th, 2022 in construction industry, fines, health & safety, local government, news by tracey

‘A prosecution brought by Thanet District Council has seen a building materials company fined £400,000 over an incident that left one employee with life-changing injuries and a second suffering from deep cuts and lacerations.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 16th May 2022

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk

New Acts – legislation.gov.uk

2022 c. 35 – Judicial Review and Courts Act 2022

2022 c. 33 – Pension Schemes (Conversion of Guaranteed Minimum Pensions) Act 2022

2022 c. 31 – Health and Care Act 2022

2022 c. 30 – Building Safety Act 2022

Source: www.legislation.gov.uk

EV charging infrastructure – construction, projects, planning and tax issues – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘In the third and final blog in our series looking at common queries on the roll out of EV infrastructure (see our previous blogs on progress and challenges and landlord and tenant issues) we focus on construction, planning and tax aspects.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 11th May 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Does the platinum jubilee bank holiday entitle a contractor to an extension of time? – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted May 6th, 2022 in construction industry, contracts, holidays, news by tracey

‘An additional bank holiday has been created in the UK this year to celebrate the Queen’s Platinum Jubilee. Does this entitle a contractor to claim an extension of time? A client recently asked this question in the context of a project using the JCT Design and Build Contract 2016. It certainly throws up a number of issues.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 4th May 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Crystal clear: “no dispute” defences unlikely to succeed at adjudication enforcement – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘While defendants in adjudication enforcement proceedings often assert jurisdictional defences as a matter of course, Eyre J’s judgement in BraveJoin Co Ltd v Prosperity Moseley Street Ltd is a reminder that – in practical terms – they will rarely succeed, particularly where they rely on the absence of a crystallised dispute.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 11th April 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

JCT’s insolvency payment regime – how does it work? – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted April 11th, 2022 in construction industry, contracts, debts, insolvency, news by tracey

‘The case of Levi Solicitors LLP v Wilson and another considered the impact of contractor insolvency on debts owed to an employer under a JCT contract.
Significantly, the court helpfully clarified how the payment regime under JCT contracts operated in the context of insolvency. This blog takes a closer look at the case.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 6th April 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Restricted development: Good faith obligations in development agreements; and the Court’s inherent jurisdiction to alter the register – Falcon Chambers

Posted April 8th, 2022 in chambers articles, construction industry, contracts, jurisdiction, news by sally

‘The recent High Court decision in Quay House Admirals Way Land Ltd and another v Rockwell Properties Ltd [2022] EWHC 545 (Ch) raises and answers interesting questions about interim remedies, good faith obligations, and the inherent jurisdiction of the Court to order the alteration of the register, all of which will be of interest to all property litigators.’

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Falcon Chambers, March 2022

Source: www.falcon-chambers.com

Managing PFI contract expiry risks – updated IPA guidance – Practical Law: Construction Blog

Posted March 25th, 2022 in construction industry, contracts, news by tracey

‘On 28 February 2022, the Infrastructure and Projects Authority (IPA) published its latest guidance to contracting authorities (CAs) on preparing for PFI contract expiry. It provides practical guidance on managing expiry and service transition. We have previously written about the IPA’s earlier guidance and its PFI expiry health check report.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 23rd March 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

TCC’s useful reminder of limits of natural justice challenges to adjudicators’ decisions – Practical Law: Construction Blog

‘The case in question is Bilton and Johnson (Building) Co Ltd v Three Rivers Property Investments Ltd, which was heard by Mr Jason Coppell QC (sitting as a deputy High Court judge). I admit that the case doesn’t tell us anything new about the law of adjudication, but it is a useful reminder of the limits of natural justice challenges to adjudicators’ decisions, as well as the fact that whether an adjudicator’s findings are correct as a matter of law is not material to whether their decision should be enforced.’

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Practical Law: Construction Blog, 18th March 2022

Source: constructionblog.practicallaw.com

Farrar Out – Local Government Lawyer

‘Clare Mendelle and James Goldthorpe discuss how the insolvency of Farrar Construction leads to clarity from the Courts on dealing with an insolvent contractor under JCT.’

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Local Government Lawyer, 11th March 2022

Source: www.localgovernmentlawyer.co.uk