Monthly Archives: January 2023

REUTERS |
January 25, 2023

Building Safety Act 2022: changing the rules on the landlord and tenant relationship, Part 2 – qualifying lease certificates

In a previous blog, I explored one aspect of the statutory reallocation of risk for the costs of works to remedy building safety issues in the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022). The focus of that blog was the new landlord’s certificate, designed as a tool for the landlord to communicate with leaseholders as to whether it is “responsible” for defects, or whether it meets the “contribution condition” in the BSA 2022. In this blog, I will focus on the second element of this new framework, the “qualifying lease certificate” or “leaseholder certificate”. Continue reading →

REUTERS | Arnd Wiegmann
January 17, 2023

Hello to 2023

Happy new year everyone.

Once again I am reflecting on what I’d like to see and, looking at my 2022 list, I think I could probably include all of them again apart from three:

  • Clarity regarding starting a true value adjudication when you haven’t satisfied a smash and grab obligation (because that one has been sorted out by O’Farrell J in Bexheat Ltd v Essex Services Group Ltd and Roger Ter Haar QC in AM Construction Ltd v The Darul Amaan Trust).
  • A return to normality. Well, just when we thought we were beginning to move past Brexit and the COVID pandemic, Russia invaded Ukraine and turned the world upside down again. I’m not sure I know what “normal” is anymore, so how can you wish for it??
  • West Ham qualifying for Europe again (and more on this later).

However, as I also predict some of my 2022 wish list will be realised in 2023, I’m not going to repeat them. Continue reading →

REUTERS |
January 13, 2023

Episode 18 of The Construction Briefing out now

Are you a construction practitioner wondering what might happen in 2023? If so, then wonder no more. Instead, listen to episode 18 of The Construction Briefing, in which Michelle Rousell and Yassir Mahmood of Practical Law Construction discuss what they think the big issues for 2023 are. They involve collateral warranties and building safety, both in the courts and through more legislative developments.

The Construction Briefing is an alternative way of learning about key developments in construction law, with our editorial team discussing some of the wider issues those developments raise.

You can subscribe wherever you get your podcasts (like Apple Podcasts, Google Podcasts and Spotify), enabling you to download and listen to all episodes on the go on your phone. Alternatively, you can use our audio and video RSS feed to access the latest edition as soon as it is published.

REUTERS | Regis Duvignau
January 12, 2023

St James’s Oncology v Lendlease: the value of project-specific amendments to JCT contracts

The recent judgment of the TCC in St James’s Oncology SPC Ltd (Project Co) v Lendlease Construction (Europe) Ltd and another provides a fascinating commentary on the importance of drafting a building contract that is tailored to deliver the needs of the employer and the end-user.  Continue reading →

REUTERS | Russell Cheyne
January 11, 2023

Concurrent delay: the latest guidance from the courts

In Thomas Barnes & Sons plc v Blackburn with Darwen Borough Council, the TCC had to consider whether there was a concurrent delay and if so how did that affect the parties’ rights under the contract. The delay to the works in this case entitled the employer to terminate the contract and engage a third party to complete the works. Continue reading →

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