Legal issues and construction law

Adjudicators should aim for an ‘industry result’

2025-10-23T06:01:00+01:00By Tony Bingham

Adjudication’s rough-and-readiness is partly about getting a result that makes sense in industry terms – that just works

What will the Employment Rights Bill mean for construction?

2025-10-22T06:01:00+01:00By Victoria Regan

Construction employers must prepare for the significant impact of this legislation

Will the CLC building control approval guidance be a gateway to success?

2025-10-13T06:00:00+01:00By Asif Patel1 comments

These short guidance notes aim to reduce rejections and delays by providing more clarity on what information to include in gateway 2 applications

Stick to the payment process – or pay the price

2025-09-09T06:00:00+01:00By Tony Bingham

A new ruling underlines the rigidity of the payment process: no pay less or similar notice, then no wiggle room in sum due

What the immigration white paper means for construction

2025-09-04T06:00:00+01:00By Joanna Hunt

The proposals are a potential minefield for the construction industry

Beware what you promise on WhatsApp – it could be a binding contract

2025-08-28T06:00:00+01:00By Louis Twitchett

Informal messages can form a binding contract even without formal documentation

When is an interim account not an interim account?

2025-08-26T06:00:00+01:00By Tony Bingham

An employer attempted to argue that an interim application for payment on account wasn’t detailed enough, but the High Court disagreed

Target cost contracts offer a promising pricing model

2025-08-20T06:00:00+01:00By Francis Ho1 comments

How does JCT’s new target cost contract compare to its NEC rival – and what are the benefits of this pricing model?

Unpacking the Building Safety Regulator reforms that aim to unlock high-rise delays

2025-08-08T06:00:00+01:00By Matthew Bool and Becky Johnson

What operational changes are being made to help the Building Safety Regulator tackle the excessive gateway approval waits on high-rise residential schemes?

Why an appeal ruling on negligence offers reassurance to valuers

2025-07-23T06:00:00+01:00By Polly McBride

The Court of Appeal has confirmed the two-step test for liability for negligent valuation, in a ruling on Bratt vs Jones

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Simon Tolson to stand down as Fenwick Elliott senior partner

2024-06-13T09:52:00+01:00By Carl Brown

Prominent lawyer steps back after 23 years at the helm

Trio of partners appointed by construction law firm Fenwick Elliott

2023-09-11T10:39:00+01:00

Senior associates promoted in London and Dubai

SNC-Lavalin arm pleads guilty to Libya fraud

2019-12-20T06:00:00+00:00By Jordan Marshall

Subsidiary of Canadian firm which owns Atkins fined more than £160m

Number of High Court disputes jumps again

2019-12-06T06:00:00+00:00By Tom Lowe

Carillion collapse blamed as annual figure heads towards 400 mark

Camden council makes £130m High Court claim against tower block contractors

2019-12-02T06:00:00+00:00By Alice Lorenzato-Lloyd

Legal action centres on Chalcots Estate evacuation in June 2017

Willmott Dixon and Hackney row over defects on resi block

2019-09-04T05:00:00+01:00By Hamish Champ

Contractor’s housing arm Willmott Partnership Homes disputes ‘many’ of council’s claims

Second law firm begins action over Lendlease share fall

2019-08-13T05:00:00+01:00By Dave Rogers and Jordan Marshall

Price plunge triggered by woes at engineering business

HS2 faces crunch ruling on Old Oak Common start date

2019-07-18T05:00:00+01:00By Jordan Marshall

Railway will hear in September whether challenge by Bechtel will stop it awarding job to Balfour Beatty team

Heathrow beats challenge against third runway

2019-05-01T11:47:00+01:00By Jordan Marshall

Twenty-one of the 26 claims were deemed to be unarguable

HS2 procurement blunders have cost us £100m, Bechtel says

2019-04-25T05:00:00+01:00By Jordan Marshall1 comments

US giant goes to court after £1.1bn Old Oak station job awarded to Balfour Beatty team

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The coronavirus crisis: What does it all mean?

2020-03-18T06:00:00+00:00By Dave Rogers, Yolande Barnes and Simon Tolson

The implications of covid-19 for construction, housing and legal

Brexit and construction law: Changing times

2017-06-23T06:00:00+01:00By Al Watson, Jill Carey and Clare Harman-Clark

One year on from the EU referendum, nobody knows how a post-Brexit world will look

Interview: Richard Saxon

2016-08-04T06:00:00+01:00By Francis Ho

Richard Saxon, chair of the Joint Contracts Tribunal, speaks to Building legal columnist Francis Ho about new kinds of contracts, the competition, and where he thinks the industry is heading

Crossing the line

2015-08-28T07:00:00+01:00By Roxane McMeeken

With the Calais crisis still a hot media topic, the government is on the warpath against construction companies employing illegal workers. But is the sector doing enough to make sure it doesn’t get caught out?

Procurement on trial

2014-08-22T06:00:00+01:00By Joey Gardiner1 comments

Construction firms are increasingly emboldened to take the government to court over its procurement decisions, but who’s to blame?

Museum of Liverpool: Nightmare at the museum

2013-08-08T00:00:00+01:00By Joey Gardiner

The £72m Museum of Liverpool may have opened in 2011, but problems with the design and build mean parts of the iconic building are still inaccessible to the public. Last week’s £1.13m court judgment highlights the dangers for small consultants on big projects

Insurance special report: BIM

2012-10-26T00:00:00+01:00By Roxane McMeeken

The rise of collaboration software has created a lot of questions for insurers - not least how to divide up and assign blame if anything goes wrong

Costly legal disputes: Everyone's a loser

2012-06-15T00:00:00+01:00By Emily Wright

The amount spent on legal disputes has jumped by a third in the UK over the past year. Why are construction firms still so keen to spend on litigation?

Sparks fly: The row over electricians' wage agreements

2012-01-04T10:30:00+00:00By Iain Withers

The decision of seven major M&E contractors to break away from the 40-year-old JIB wage agreement was prompted by an ‘urgent need to modernise’ but has already led to angry clashes between workers and police. Building reports on a row that threatens to become the sector’s biggest industrial relations dispute ...

Hackney Empire vs Aviva Insurance: The Empire strikes back

2011-07-15T00:00:00+01:00By Iain Withers

This is the tale of a theatre project, backed by Lord Sugar, that landed its client with a £3.2m headache. Now eight years on there’s a legal battle over a bond between the insurer and the theatre owner

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