There is no common law right for an employer to omit work from a contractor’s scope of works, yet an “omissions clause” is a common feature of many construction contracts. In this bulletin, we consider the key principles underlying such […]

Can an employer be held to be vicariously liable for unauthorised breaches of the Data Protection Act 1998 (the “DPA 1998”) committed by an employee? The UK Supreme Court sets the record straight in a case where Wm Morrison Supermarkets […]

Whilst no one yet knows the full extent of the potential implications of COVID-19 on the construction industry, it is now inevitable that almost all construction companies are going to be affected in some way. Contractors are likely to be […]

At the date of writing, the official advice from Robert Jenrick, the Secretary of State for Housing, Communities and Local Government, is that individuals working on construction sites can continue to do so but must follow Public Health England’s guidance […]

Earlier this month we published a bulletin considering the potential implications of COVID-19 on construction companies and how to mitigate them. Since then, the Government has advised widespread social distancing and self-isolation; including the recommendation that entire households should self-isolate […]

In the recent case of C Spencer Limited v MW High Tech Projects UK Limited, the Court of Appeal considered whether, in the case of a hybrid contract (one which provides for both “construction operations” and “non-construction operations” within the […]

In the case of Lejonvarn v Burgess & Anr the Court of Appeal considered whether a claimant’s conduct during litigation, including its “haphazard and spray gun” case, justified an award for indemnity costs to the defendant. Background The defendant, an […]

In contrast to a ‘best endeavours’ obligation, a contractual obligation to use ‘reasonable endeavours’ will generally only require a party to take one of a number of reasonable courses of action in order to discharge the obligation. In addition, a […]

In the case of Billingford Holdings Ltd & BFL Trade Ltd v SMC Building Solutions Ltd and another [2019], the court rejected an urgent application for injunctive relief attempting to prevent an adjudicator and the other party to an adjudication […]

In the recent case of VVB M&E Group Limited & Anor v Optilan (UK) Limited, the court considered the terms of two ambiguously worded vesting certificates to determine whether ownership of materials had vested in the transferee. Background In 2015, […]