In this article we discuss the recent Court of Appeal decision in Aspect Contracts (Asbestos) Limited v Higgins Construction Plc. Ultimately the question before the Court was: how long do you have to commence legal proceedings to finally determine a […]

In the recent case of Westshield Civil Engineering Limited and Westshield Limited v Buckingham Group Contracting Limited the Court ruled on the enforcement of an adjudicator’s decision as to the identity of the relevant parties to a sub-contract. Background Buckingham […]

In the recent case of Parkwood Leisure Limited v Laing O’Rouke Wales and West Limited, the Technology and Construction Court had to consider whether a collateral warranty could constitute a ‘construction contract’ for the purpose of section 104 of the […]

With their popular ethos of flexibility, simplicity and clarity, NEC3 contracts are featuring more and more on construction projects around the UK. However, for the most part, NEC3 contracts are not as comprehensively written as other standard forms of construction […]

The recent Scottish case of Whyte and Mackay Ltd v Blyth & Blyth Consulting Engineers Ltd (2013) concerned interesting issues relating to whether enforcement of an adjudicator’s decision is compatible with the European Convention on Human Rights (“ECHR”). In this […]

Mediation is a flexible and confidential form of alternative dispute resolution (ADR) and is now considered to be the primary method of ADR. It is most commonly used to contain conflicts or to resolve disputes and is less litigious than […]

In the recent case of Elvanite Full Circle Limited v AMEC Earth & Environment (UK) Limited, Elvanite sued AMEC for loss of profit on a failed property development transaction, but was unable to recover damages because AMEC had limited its […]

In April 2013, an updated version of the entire NEC3 suite of contracts was released as a complete box set. The previous versions of the NEC3 suite of contracts (the June 2005 editions) can no longer be purchased from the […]

The Late Payment of Commercial Debts Regulations 2013 (the “Regulations”) came into force on 16 March 2013. They apply to all commercial contracts, including construction contracts, entered into after this date. The Regulations amend the Late Payment of Commercial Debts […]

Recovery of retention is a problematic area for all parties in the contractual chain, with non-payment of retention often being the cause of substantial cash flow problems. With insolvency rates currently at a record high, it is now more important […]