All articles by Tony Bingham – Page 7
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CommentWealth and safety: Risk shifting on Terminal 5
Steven Morgan, the former admiral who runs BAA’s procurement, wants to shift all risk to his contractors and consultants. That’s fine and good, but there are costs …
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CommentPrivates on parade: Mediation
You probably like to think that mediation is a private dispute resolution method where everything is kept secret. But it seems the courts can order you to reveal all
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CommentGood intentions vs reality: Collaborative working
The importance of collaborative working has been well understood and agreed for at least the past 45 years. The problems arise only when you actually try to do it
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CommentThe one and only: using the NEC for public projects
The Office of Government Commerce has decreed that only one form of contract be used for all public work. But how did it come that conclusion? Well, that’s a good question
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CommentDevil take the hindmost: A six party case
Here’s a story about a flood in an office that caused millions of pounds of damage and gave rise to a six-party legal case. The question, of course, was who was going to pay
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CommentTranscendental mediation: A mediator's role
The talking cure for construction disputes is a fine way to settle an argument – but only if the mediator is prepared to go beyond the role of polite, ineffectual facilitator
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CommentThe meme machine: What do you think is normal?
Disputes arise when parties feel that things have strayed too far from the norm. They find that terribly upsetting. Why? Well, there’s a theory that explains that...
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CommentTime and punishment: Interest on unfair debt
If you don’t pay a legitimate debt, you are liable for interest on top. That’s only fair. But what if the creditor was at fault in some way, or the invoice was wrong?
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CommentCold comfort: Paying damages to a firm in the red
It’s a chilling situation indeed to find yourself forced to pay hefty damages to a firm so far in the red that it’s positively crimson. Camden council can tell you all about it
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CommentComplexity theory: Interconnected disputes
How do you deal with a whole load of connected disputes that all seem to have a knock-on effect on one another?
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CommentPlaying golf with Superman: Multiple adjudications
If you had to decide a dispute involving 51,000 job orders in 28 days, would you need to wear your underpants outside your clothes? Well, the following case put this to the test
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CommentWatch out for the tentacles: Defective Premises Act
Are you familiar with the Defective Premises Act? You’re not? Oh dear … well before you do any work on a house, you really ought to read the following horror story
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CommentTell me why: Give reasons for your decisions
Here’s a warning to all you adjudicators out there: if you give your reasons for a decision, then you have to address all the issues. If you don’t, the whole thing may be thrown out
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CommentIt's a jungle out there: How to survive the recession
What with battling the birds of prey and the ravenous alligators – not to mention the swine with the money – you may have picked up more survival skills than you realise
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CommentYou can't just do what you want: Adjudicator's guidelines
What are the legal guidelines that an adjudicator has to stay within? This frequently asked question just became a little bit clearer thanks to a recent case in the Scottish courts
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CommentWhy the long face: Construction Act amendments
The House of Lords is considering an amendment to the Construction Act that would make its payment rules ever so simple to use. Here’s what it says
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CommentMea culpa: Disputes from the architect's point of view
The tale an architect wants a building to tell can turn into a shaggy dog story if the builders doesn’t want to tell it as well... and if they aren’t distracted by people like me
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CommentKissing goodbye to your money? Creditors voluntary arrangements
Tony Bingham Your contractor wins an adjudication award but is subject to a creditors’ voluntary arrangement. You intend to take the case to arbitration. Do you pay up in the meantime?
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CommentThe reader: Tony's booklist
Here’s my personal selection of handy reference books to help you solve those legal conundrums that my columns don’t cover
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CommentSurprise! : New information in adjudication
The box of matters for adjudication that arrives at your door may contain some nasty shocks – such as a cartload of new information. The question is, as ever, is this fair?