Geoffrey Boycott, on the best way to play Shane Warne:
“My tactic would be to take a quick single and observe him from the other end.”
We haven’t had a sporting reference for quite some time in the monthly digest, but the Ashes are almost upon us. With England having won the one-day series against New Zealand and Andy Murray victorious at Queen’s, it seems apt to mention these achievements, lest it is a long summer against Australia, even without Shane Warne in the bowling line-up (after all, they do have Mitchell Johnson, Shane Watson et al).
For those who have been distracted by sport, during June we saw a number of interesting judgments, not least the Supreme Court’s judgment in Aspect v Higgins. As the first Supreme Court decision on adjudication, the judgment has attracted considerable attention. Isabel Hitching explained the case and its implications and Alastair Walls discussed issues from a practitioner’s perspective.
Other adjudication news included two Ramsey J judgments from 2014, where he held that the parties’ contract contained an adjudication clause and the dispute crystallised when an interim application for payment went unpaid.
Other courts have also been busy. For example, the:
- Supreme Court applied the principle of commercial common sense when interpreting written contracts (in this case, a service charge in leases for holiday chalets).
- Singapore Court of Appeal reviewed (in Perusahaan v CRW ) whether a DAB’s decision under the FIDIC Red Book was enforceable, which Michael Mendelblat commented on.
- TCC considered the interplay between sections 9 and 44 of the Arbitration Act 1996, whether costs could be summarily assessed by a different judge and the reasonableness (under UCTA) of limitations of liability in standard term contracts.
- High Court considered the scope of a solicitor’s duty in a negligence claim.
In addition, the electronic filing pilot in the TCC in the Rolls Building started this month. In launching the pilot, Edwards-Stuart J said:
“I strongly encourage all those with current or imminent litigation in the TCC to use it where possible… It is essential that this pilot… is tested to the maximum extent possible.”
We have also had plenty of comment, with:
- Jonathan Cope looking at claiming restitution in adjudication and the potential impact of consumer law on residential occupiers.
- Matt Molloy discussing Leeds CC v Waco and also highlighting some parallels between judicial recusal and adjudication enforcement.
- Marcus Birch drawing attention to penalties, liquidated damages and ParkingEye v Beavis.
- Matthew Heywood and Neeva Rice considering the enforcement of arbitral awards in the UAE.
- Adriano Amorese looking at the risks of defects in refurbishment projects.
- Paul Prescott and Gabriel highlighting key issues when using BIM in the Middle East.
New and updated content this month included new notes on the duty to warn, e-signatures, requisitioning a utility supply and agreed remedies in contract. We have also updated our note on practical completion and our suite of notes on the MF forms of contract.
In public procurement news, there was May’s case digest, a legislation and policy review and guidance on procurement investigations, framework agreements and the early termination of PPP contracts.
Finally, the Dispute Resolution blog continues to gain momentum with over ten new posts this month. Click here to read about issues such as the Insurance Act 2015, solicitors’ negligence and discovering fraud after judgment or a settlement.
Time for Boycott bingo:
“I could have hit that with a stick of celery.”
