• United Kingdom

• Construction and engineering - Foundations

06-12-2018

Welcome to Foundations, our construction and engineering monthly newsletter. Foundations will update you with details of what we think are the top three court cases decided in the previous month, a paper providing insight and guidance on a particular area of construction law and practice in the UK (UK insight) and internationally (International Insight). We hope you find our newsletter useful and informative.

UK insight

Clear Intentions – a health warning about letters of intent

Letters of intent have been considered by the Courts in a number of cases over the past few years. So what are the common pitfalls and what advice can we take from recent case law to ensure the contractual relationship between Employer and Contractor is properly defined and managed under a letter of intent? 

The starting point must be to avoid letters of intent wherever possible.   However, in circumstances where a letter of intent is unavoidable, we have set out some key considerations.

Read the full article here 

Top 3 cases

Guidance provided on the interpretation of no greater liability clauses

The TCC has held that a “no greater liability” clause within an undated contractor’s collateral warranty is subject to the same periods of limitation that apply to claims made under the underlying building contract. The case also makes it clear that unless expressly state to the contrary, the liability period under a collateral warranty (even an undated one) will be co-extensive with that provided by the corresponding contract.

Read the full article here

The court stops attempts to avoid the consequences of an adjudicator’s decision

The case considers the enforcement of an adjudicator’s decision and reinforces the established principal that the Courts will not assist parties to avoid the effects of an adjudicator’s decision. The implications of this decision emphasises that if a party disagrees with an outcome at adjudication, to avoid enforcement, it must follow up with legal proceedings, otherwise the adjudicator’s decision will be enforced.

Read the full article here

Contracting out of liability for concurrent delay and the prevention principle

In a recent judgment the Court of Appeal looked at a situation where the parties to a building contract had sought to contract out of the usual position on concurrent delay by including an amendment which shifted the burden of concurrent delays entirely onto the Contractor.  Whilst the result was not unexpected, the judgment offers some helpful insight for those parties considering taking a similar approach to the issue of concurrent delay and more generally on the courts approach to the prevention principle.

Read the full article here

Latest Legislation

Construction (Retention Deposit Schemes) Bill

The bill, which aims to safeguard retention monies is expected to receive its second reading on 23 November 2018.

Read the full article here

TCC Electronic Filing Extension

The electronic working pilot scheme was due to run until 1 April 2018, has now been extended until 6 April 2020.

Read the full article here

House of Lords Inquiry into Off-Site Construction

The committee heading up this report which looks at off-site manufacture for construction, concluded that the construction sector as it currently operates cannot meet the UK's need for housing and may struggle to meet the need for infrastructure. The report is currently awaiting Government Response and debate.

Read the full article here