HAND OVER ALL THE MONEY You can recover damages for losses caused by breach of contract but probably not for the loss of the use of money awarded in damages. Interest, in other words. That’s a bit odd isn’t it? “What the Sempra Metals case does is bring the ‘loss of use of money’ smack […]
A recent TCC decision has interpreted a “no greater liability” clause in a collateral warranty given by a builder as importing the same limitation periods applicable to claims under the building contract. “No greater liability” clauses are commonly included in collateral warranties and the present decision suggests that they are not to be given an […]
In the recent case of Lehman Brothers International (Europe) (In administration) v ExxonMobil Financial Services BV, one of the questions the High Court had to decide was when “close of business” had occurred for the purposes of determining whether a written notice had been delivered on time. The relevant notice was delivered at 18:02. The […]
AN EXEMPLARY DISASTER Fail to renew your public liability insurance at your peril, as this dreadful tale of a family-run electrical firm, a little old lady’s bungalow and some (possibly) poorly rigged festoon cabling proves. “One expert thought the single lead light left on with a 100W bulb was responsible for the fire. Another pointed […]
It is common practice in construction and engineering contracts for contracting parties to seek to limit their contractual liability. The recent case of McGee Group Limited v Galliford Try Building Limited concerned a main contractor’s attempt to challenge the scope of a clause purporting to limit a sub-contractor’s liability for delay. Background Galliford Try Building […]
CAUSATION AND REMOTENESS If your little mistake turns out to be a massive mistake because of my little mistake, can you be made to pay the whole of the bill? Over to the Court of Appeal When things come to the court of appeal, the loser is attacking the interpretation and understanding of the law. […]
PRIVITY OF CONTRACT DOCTRINE LOOSENED. THIS DOCTRINE IS THAT ONLY THE CONTRACTING PARTIES CAN SUE OR TAKE ACTION AGAINST EACH OTHER AND THAT ONLY THE PARTY WHO HAS SUFFERED LOSS MAY RECOVER THAT LOSS, HAS BEEN RELAXED IN THE ST MARTINS CORPORATION CASE BELOW. THIS CASE HELD THAT THERE WAS AN EXCEPTION TO THIS DOCTRINE […]
JCT SLEEPS WITH THE FISHES Standard forms are supposed to make things easy, but that wasn’t exactly the builder’s experience in Reinwood vs Brown. Maybe it’s time the whole lot were taken for a ride… “Out go the workers. In come the form wranglers. Standard forms gleam and pong like a dead mackerel in the […]
The appellant, SKK, awarded the respondent contractor, GMTS, a contract for the construction of two houses. SKK appointed an architect, Mr. Chan Sau Yan, Sonny, who issued 26 interim certificates. SKK paid the first 24 of these. The architect extended the date to 17 April 2013, and issued the completion certificate on 15 May 2013 […]
HELL IS A VERY SMALL PLACE This is the story of a common-or-garden domestic extension that took years to complete and resulted in a savage battle between the architect and the client that ended up in the High Court “The customer wisely moves out. Not to worry, it will be all over by Christmas. That’s […]
Tinseltime’s machinery was damages by dust caused by the contractor working for Denbighshire County Council and the Welsh Assembly Government cut concrete blocks. Tinseltime brought an action for damages, loss of profit and loss of management time against all three. The first defendant, Roberts, was the contractor for part of the A5 Pont Melin Rhug […]
Jones Day have published useful analysis on the latest developments on agreements to negotiate, which is detailed below. A recent decision from the High Court of England and Wales represents a marked departure from the English courts’ approach to the enforceability of agreements to negotiate in commercial contracts. In Emirates Trading Agency LLC v. Prime […]