Construction Law – Page 299 – The industry's own legal primer

Consumers and construction contracts

4th March 2019

Peter Kitson of Russell-Cooke LLP says legislation is needed to provide a proper basis for consumers to contract with construction industry suppliers. Existing legislation is hard to apply in construction and creates unenforceable rights, he argues.

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Smart buildings: unlocking the potential of bricks and mortar

1st March 2019

Data driven technologies hold out great promise in developing ‘Smart Buildings’ and ‘Smart Cities’ but, as Simon Porter of CMS warns, there are risks and barriers to be overcome.

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Insuring at your peril

1st March 2019

Insurance expert John D Wright of JD Risk Associates warns that the interpretation of ‘perils’ in insurance policies can be tricky, and standard joint names protection clauses in contracts cannot be relied on.

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ADR liaison forum proposed

1st March 2019

In our latest alternative dispute resolution series article Tracey Summerell of Dentons UK and Middle East LLP explains new measures proposed to spread awareness of the alternatives to litigation. More innovative approaches might help the proposals to succeed, she suggests.

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New and proposed legislation: State of play table 237

1st March 2019

This table, prepared by Dentons UK and Middle East LLP, provides a regularly amended guide to new and proposed legislation that will affect the construction industry. In addition to EU Directives and UK legislation, the table includes notes highlighting discussion papers issued by both government and non-government organisations, and commentary on the latest developments.

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Legislative proposals to implement Project Bank Accounts in public sector supply chains

1st March 2019

Debbie Abrahams, Labour MP for Oldham East and Saddleworth, has introduced a Private Member’s Bill into Parliament championing the use of project bank accounts (PBAs). The Public Sector Supply Chains (Project Bank Accounts) Bill 2017–2019 (the Bill) will require clients to pay money due under the project contract into a trust account. Such money is then available to make timely payments to the contractor and sub-contractors and is protected in the event of insolvency further up the supply chain.

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Legal terms explained: Crystallisation

12th March 20191st March 2019

The Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 provides: ‘A party to a construction contract has the right to refer a dispute arising under the contract for adjudication …’ (s 108). A statutory right to adjudicate only arises where there is a ‘dispute’. Therefore, before referring a matter to adjudication, it is important to establish that there is, in fact, a dispute – ie the dispute has crystallised.

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Cabinet Office launches ‘playbook’ to improve outsourcing

1st March 2019

Changes to the way government allocates risk between itself and its suppliers have been announced by the Cabinet Office, which published an ‘Outsourcing Playbook’ in February to improve how it works with industry.

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Scotland halves threshold for project bank accounts

1st March 2019

The Scottish government has announced that the threshold for using project bank accounts (PBAs) will be halved from £4m to £2m – and from £10m to £5m for civil engineering projects – from 19 March.

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Large fine follows fatal fall at Ealing site

1st March 2019

Two construction firms have been ordered to pay a combined total of almost £1m after a worker fell to his death when a temporary platform collapsed at a housing development in Ealing.

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