Legal views – Page 102
-
Comment
Waste opportunities
EU watch The European commission wants a 20% reduction in carbon emissions by 2020. To meet this goal, a variety of policies and guidelines are due this year.
-
CommentIt’s different this time
Adjudication is about deciding the ‘now dispute’ and moving on. But it’s not always so simple. In this case, a firm beefed up its arguments and came back for round two
-
CommentA difference of emphasis
Letters of intent are paved with good intentions, but can trigger endless legal manoeuvres. A joyous time for lawyers but for nobody else. Here the couple to fall out were Skanska and supermarket chain Somerfield
-
CommentWhat’s fair is fair
If you follow the gold rush to Dubai, what are your chances of surviving a contractual dispute with the client? Well, about the same as in Dorking ...
-
CommentBitter fighting on the home front
Forget road rage – it’s during disputes between homeowners and builders that the claws really come out. Fortunately, there is a way to make sure that this doesn’t happen
-
CommentEnd this travesty
In these topsy-turvey times subbies think they’re designers, QSs act like lawyers and architects let builders specify. Wouldn’t it be refreshing if we stuck to our job descriptions in 2007?
-
CommentWorlds apart
STATE YOUR CASE — Tony Bingham says arbitrators, judges and adjudicators do the same job, but the timescale of adjudication makes the process markedly different, argues Nick Henchie
-
CommentSanta’s book collection
If you’re buying Christmas gifts for an architect, main contractor, subbie, lawyer or adjudicator, then we’ve got the perfect books for them
-
CommentPlaying their silly games
A court applied the law correctly when it quashed an adjudication decision that broke the rules. But perhaps it’s the rules, not the decision, that should be overturned
-
CommentErrors of judgment
Tony Bingham Half a dozen Appeal Court judges have recently gone on the record to explain what adjudicaton is all about. What a pity they all got it wrong...
-
CommentThreatening behaviour
Expert witnesses are immune from being sued for anything said or done in legal proceedings. One judge wanted to extend this principle, but the Court of Appeal disagreed
-
CommentMake time wasters pay
At the moment there is no bill for court costs but action needs to be taken against defendants who insist on playing silly games and pile up court costs on the way
-
CommentThe times they have a-changed
Tony Bingham It used to be seen as bad form to adjudicate negligence claims against professional gentlemen. On the other hand, that does seem to be what parliament intended...
-
CommentDances with gorillas
The ODA manifesto for building the 2012 Olympics talks about delivering on time, to a tight budget.But if that is to be done, novel ways of thinking are needed
-
CommentWhat rights does a tree have?
If a neighbour’s tree is damaging your property you have a right to remedy the situation by chopping it down. Except if it belongs to the council, in which case it’s a lot trickier
-
CommentTarred with the same brush
A bitumen cartel got stung by the European Commission when it was caught flouting competition laws. But it was the parent companies that got their knuckles rapped hardest
-
CommentHelping the poor struggler
An arbitrator or adjudicator may feel tempted to redress the scales of justice if they believe one of the parties is poorly represented and needs a leg up. But is this really on?
-
CommentDo you want to know a secret?
A leaked letter from the DTI is very revealing as to the latest government thinking on reforms to adjudication, particularly its apparent disregard for the construction industry’s views
-
CommentRead them and weep
Letters of intent are often used inappropriately in the construction industry and, as such, they should be employed with a good deal of caution – or not at all
-
CommentCertifiable adjudicators
Like the umpires in last month’s ill-fated test match, adjudicators test the dispute against the rules and make a judgment – unfortunately some construction folk, and one or two lawyers, haven’t quite grasped that they can’t tamper with the ball either …