Architects Journal
Kim Franklin

Kim Franklin is a barrister and has practised from Crown Office Chambers since its formation in 2000. She has become an increasingly prominent figure in major infra structures projects and other large scale domestic and international disputes.

Back to basics law: how to make sure you have full construction contract insurance

25-Sep-2008
Antony Edwards-Stuart QC looks at the different forms of construction contract insurances
Back to basics law: contractural provisoins for time and money - who benefits?

19-Jun-2008
Barristers Kim Franklin and Sue Lindsey look at points that the certifying architct may wish to bear in mind when balancing an employer’s and a contractor’s desire for compensation for delay
Back to basics law: what is the legal difference between a professional and a contractor?

10-Apr-2008
Barristers Kim Franklin and Sue Lindsey look at the difference between the standard applied by the courts to professionals, such as architects, and that applied to constructors
GOOD MEDIATION

5-Jul-2007
LEGAL
DOUBLE OR QUITS

28-Jun-2007
LEGAL
GUN FOR HIRE

21-Jun-2007
LEGAL
RANSOM NOTES

14-Jun-2007
LEGAL
NUISANCE CALL

7-Jun-2007
LEGAL
GOING TO THE WIRE

24-May-2007
LEGAL
TIME AT LARGE

17-May-2007
LEGAL
CARE AND SKILL

26-Apr-2007
LEGAL
MAN AND PIG

12-Apr-2007
LEGAL
DEVILISH DELAYS

15-Mar-2007
LEGAL
FLOODING OVER

8-Mar-2007
LEGAL
ONE LAST SCHEME

1-Mar-2007
LEGAL
OUT OF TIME

8-Feb-2007
LEGAL
ORAL TROUBLE

1-Feb-2007
LEGAL
RABBIT STEW

25-Jan-2007
LEGAL
SECOND CHANCE

18-Jan-2007
LEGAL
PROGRESS REPORT

21-Dec-2006
LEGAL
COURTING SUCCESS

14-Dec-2006
LEGAL
A QUESTION OF TIME

30-Nov-2006
LEGAL
LEFT SHAKEN UP

23-Nov-2006
LEGAL
SETTING TRAPS

9-Nov-2006
LEGAL
NO GOING BACK?

5-Oct-2006
LEGAL
SECOND HELPINGS

28-Sep-2006
LEGAL
OFF-PITCH ANTICS

7-Sep-2006
LEGAL
WARNING NOTICE

3-Aug-2006
LEGAL
ANIMAL INSTINCTS

13-Jul-2006
LAW
EXPERT ADVICE

23-Mar-2006
LAW
LETTER OF THE LAW

26-Jan-2006
LEGAL WEBWATCH
FINDING FLAWS

19-Jan-2006
LEGAL
LETTER OF INTENT

24-Nov-2005
An oral contract, so the saying goes, is not worth the paper it is written on. While this may not be entirely true, it is certainly the case that failing to take the trouble to record your agreement in writing does make it difficult to prove what has been agreed, if there is some doubt about it later, writes Kim Franklin. And there usually is.
Civil litigation, no footnotes and the outcome is anyone's guess

2-Sep-2004
legal matters
The lonely arbitrator and the need for a level playing field

26-Aug-2004
legal matters
Winners and losers in the adjudicators' generation game

8-Jul-2004
legal matters
Collateral warranties are just waiting to be awoken

1-Jul-2004
legal matters
Collateral warranties are just waiting to be awoken

1-Jul-2004
legal matters
Participation is key in solving the problems of mediation

24-Jun-2004
legal matters
Tale of the tort minefield that sends us back to the contracts

17-Jun-2004
legal matters
The extraordinarily sensitive problem of liability in nuisance

10-Jun-2004
legal matters
Ceiling collapse tests the limits of insurance policy's liability

20-May-2004
legal matters
Ethical gauntlet thrown down in pursuit of construction code

13-May-2004
In a lecture last June, Professor John Uff QC suggested that there was scope for a single ethical code for that loose grouping of professionals from many disciplines who work in construction law and who are bound at present by a variety of different professional standards (AJ 10.7.03). The Society of Construction Law (SCL) picked up this gauntlet and set up an ethics group to consider the matter. On 2 December, Judge Thornton QC of the Technology and Construction Court gave a paper ...
The cold truth - public lapse does not mean private claim

25-Mar-2004
legal matters
Planning enforcements demand attention, not deliberate defiance

11-Mar-2004
legal matters
Unravelling the tortuous process of teaching tort

12-Feb-2004
legal matters
Dither, discount or demand? How best to avoid payment disputes

5-Feb-2004
legal matters
The court can put the boot in, but it is not always well placed

29-Jan-2004
legal matters
Public wrongs, private rights - the duty of the local authority

22-Jan-2004
Local authorities perform many functions that affect us all in our daily lives. The framework within which they act is defined purely by statute, as interpreted from time to time by the courts. When considering what a local authority can and cannot do, the starting point is the relevant legislation, be it the Public Health Act, the Town and Country Planning Act, the Local Government Act, or whatever.
Complexities remain but time limits finally get more realistic

4-Dec-2003
legal matters
Adjudicator's jobs, like their decisions, are reasonably secure

27-Nov-2003
legal matters
Adjudication fears founded on the negligence of professionals

20-Nov-2003
legal matters
Once bitten, the burden of proof lies with the claimant

6-Nov-2003
The relentless slog of training as a pupil barrister with a busy construction pupil master had its occasional moments of levity.
Cherish the certainty of your contract's terms of endearment

30-Oct-2003
legal matters
Determination without tears is not guaranteed by default

23-Oct-2003
legal matters
When the chips are down, can 100-day arbitration cook on gas?

16-Oct-2003
legal matters
After 12 years of inactivity, extension causes unholy row

9-Oct-2003
legal matters
Do melted robe-clad barristers muster a sense of occasion?

25-Sep-2003
legal matters
JCT moves towards hard-nosed definition of contract rights

11-Sep-2003
legal matters
Where do you draw the line when policing the professions?

4-Sep-2003
legal matters
Deciding whether it is worth paying the price of litigation

28-Aug-2003
legal matters
Look both ways - even when crossing a one-way street

14-Aug-2003
legal matters
Developers beware: time can stand still for defective homes

31-Jul-2003
legal matters
Sign of the times: beware of the pitfalls of electronic negotiations

17-Jul-2003
There is no doubt that modern technology has transformed the lives of those of us who spend our time considering, producing and amending large quantities of documentation.
Barristers' quest for the holy grail of silk could soon be over

19-Jun-2003
legal matters
The letter of intent is a familiar figure in construction disputes

5-Jun-2003
legal matters
When the defence of the realm constitutes a plain nuisance

22-May-2003
Two quintessentially British institutions which have existed uneasily side by side in the Cambridgeshire countryside for nearly a century were pitched against each other recently in a courtroom conflict concerning individual rights and public interest.
Should speculation give way to the court's benefit of hindsight?

15-May-2003
When awarding compensation the courts endeavour to give the claimants a sum of money to put them in the same position they would have been in had they not suffered the wrong in the first place. In some cases, such as those involving money, it is relatively easy to calculate the financial compensation to be paid. In others, such as those involving loss of life or limb, compensation can only be quantified with reference to previous similar cases and complex tables.
Archaic it might be, but the law requires guarantees in writing

8-May-2003
From time to time your friends or colleagues may ask you for a reference for a venture they want to embark upon, or property they want to rent. Usually you give the reference willingly and write fulsomely about their impeccable credentials, valuable personal qualities and tidy habits.
Those who play at advocates can lose sight of the evidence

24-Apr-2003
legal matters
How different things would be with more women in the industry

17-Apr-2003
legal matters
'Adjudibration' promises speedy resolution to contract disputes

10-Apr-2003
legal matters
Uncovering a provision to make the adjudicator's decision final

27-Mar-2003
legal matters
Lessons to be learned from the case of an undervalued house

20-Mar-2003
legal matters
Crane collapse case proves that no one is ever in absolute control

27-Feb-2003
legal matters
Mediation - the implement of choice for disputing parties

30-Jan-2003
legal matters
Clarifying the many confusions that lie behind financial charges

23-Jan-2003
legal matters
Don't paddle blindly up the river with loss and expenses claims

16-Jan-2003
legal matters
Dispute resolution - when to litigate and when to arbitrate

7-Nov-2002
legal matters
Apply the rules of natural justice if you want adjudication to count

31-Oct-2002
legal matters
The raft of adjudication schemes we all have to contend with

24-Oct-2002
legal matters
Can partnering work in practice or is it merely a pipe dream?

17-Oct-2002
legal matters
You don't need to have signed on the dotted line to have a contract

10-Oct-2002
legal matters
Some surprising results from the first 40 months of adjudication

19-Sep-2002
legal matters
A guide to getting a grip on those contribution claim confusions

5-Sep-2002
legal matters
Three simple questions will end trouble with contribution claims

15-Aug-2002
legal matters
Summary judgment - a useful tool that has somehow been mislaid

1-Aug-2002
legal matters
It's a worry when Mr Toad, the arbitrator, is in the driving seat

25-Jul-2002
legal matters
The post box rule is alive and well and living in cyberspace

18-Jul-2002
legal matters
Who will take the blame when the cracks begin to show?

4-Jul-2002
legal matters
Controversial case proves to be straight fight between insurers

27-Jun-2002
legal matters
Latham revisited: adjudication through the looking glass

20-Jun-2002
legal matters
Time isn't money when it comes to the minefield of JCT contracting

13-Jun-2002
legal matters
Instincts could lead you astray in the jungle of adjudication

6-Jun-2002
legal matters
Unseemly wrangles in the world of adjudication schemes

30-May-2002
legal matters
Professionals can breathe a sigh of relief over issue of time limits

23-May-2002
legal matters
Administration of justice can at times be a meaningless palaver

16-May-2002
legal matters
Don't rely on specialist input to help you out of a design quandary

9-May-2002
legal matters
Arbritators need to adopt a more flexible approach to resolution

2-May-2002
legal matters
Court in the act: just what's so great about the House of Lords?

18-Apr-2002
legal matters
Beware the settlement - it may be easier to stand up and fight

11-Apr-2002
legal matters
Defective Premises Act: testing architects' quality thresholds

21-Mar-2002
legal matters
Where do architects stand when it comes to duty of care?

21-Feb-2002
legal matters
It would be foolish to disregard the dangers of determination

14-Feb-2002
LEGAL MATTERS
Bidding farewell to the old school of costly construction arbitration

17-Jan-2002
legal matters
So who stands to benefit from adjudicator's nice little earner?

10-Jan-2002
legal matters
A courtroom is no place for an expert witness to grind his axe

20-Dec-2001
legal matters
Courting disaster: Pearce offers salutary warning to 'experts'

6-Dec-2001
legal matters
Big changes for leaner Technology and Construction Court blowing

29-Nov-2001
LEGAL MATTERS
In adjudication, it comes down to asking the right questions

22-Nov-2001
legal matters
Contract in writing - or at least scribble down what you agreed

15-Nov-2001
legal matters
Certification liability is more onerous than design liability

8-Nov-2001
legal matters
Up the creek without a paddle on new raft of property legislation

1-Nov-2001
legal matters
When conciliation falls apart - counting the cost of court action

25-Oct-2001
legal matters
Beware the disastrous expert who changes the script in court

18-Oct-2001
legal matters
Don't count your legal chickens until the law lets them hatch

11-Oct-2001
legal matters
Patience and collaboration are virtues in the eyes of the law

4-Oct-2001
LEGAL MATTERS
A blow by the Court of Appeal to the forces of statutory control

27-Sep-2001
LEGAL MATTERS
More losers than winners with no win, no fee litigation

20-Sep-2001
legal matters
Allegations of misconduct are a sure sign of dissatisfaction

30-Aug-2001
legal matters
Making the distinction when it comes to compensation

16-Aug-2001
legal matters
A guide to court proceedings and how to avoid them, if you can

2-Aug-2001
legal matters
Working out what's excluded from HGCR is not always easy

19-Jul-2001
legal matters
Give your neighbours support if you want to stay out of court

12-Jul-2001
LEGAL MATTERS
Complexities of final certificates give us much food for thought

28-Jun-2001
legal matters
Appearance of neutrality is vital for reputation of adjudication

21-Jun-2001
LEGAL MATTERS
Contractor made a hash of handling misdeed on rail job

31-May-2001
To what extent should employers carry the can for the misdeeds of their employees? This legal chestnut was considered afresh when three men were caught smoking marijuana in their early morning tea-break, and as a consequence the contracting company that employed them was thrown off site without payment.
Courts back adjudicator in face of Human Rights Act challenge

24-May-2001
No sooner is the ink dry on the prophesy that the Human Rights Act (HRA) did indeed apply to adjudication - and that both the statutory provisions of the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act (HGCRA) and the antics of the adjudicator fell foul of the HRA's requirements for 'a fair and public hearing within a reasonable time by an independent and impartial tribunal'than the courts prove you wrong.
CRS raises the stakes by taking its case to the House of Lords

17-May-2001
legal matters
Raynsford verdict on adjudication - it is still to come to fruition

10-May-2001
It is nearly three years now since statutory adjudication first sprouted, beanstalk-like, and with what some saw as unhealthy speed, from the fertile wake of the Latham report into construction procurement. Some say, apocryphally no doubt, that Part II of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 was drafted by a biologist. I, of course, could not possibly comment, but if it were, then it would explain a lot.
Common sense judgments apply, even with professional evidence

3-May-2001
Phenolic yellowing is a little-known phenomenon which is bad news for the textile industry. It occurs when plastic packaging containing volatile yellowing precursors is placed near textiles in an atmosphere containing oxides of nitrogen where, for example, there is direct gasfired heating. In those conditions a yellow product is formed, is absorbed by the textiles and damages them.
Contract may not be fair but you can't use it to avoid liability

19-Apr-2001
Having explored the juridical destination of the juvenile defence of 'they made me do it' (AJ 12.4.01) recent events have caused me to look at how the law deals with another well-known childish protestation, that 'it's not fair'. Of course, children who complain about inequality in life are usually absolutely right to do so: their negotiation skills may be improving but their bargaining position is still somewhat under- powered. That is why the beleaguered parent has no alternative ...
Law provides escape from the jaws of predatory contractors

12-Apr-2001
In one of the various sequels to Steven Spielberg's Jaws , there is an engaging scene intended, no doubt, to provide respite from the ever-tightening grip of aquatic horror.
Courts must play waiting game to make Human Rights Act work

5-Apr-2001
If, as I have suggested, the Human Rights Act (HRA) applies to adjudication (AJ 29.3.01), what then?
Adjudication, as we know it, falls foul of the Human Rights Act

29-Mar-2001
Does the Human Rights Act (HRA) apply to adjudication? This seems to be the hot topic of the moment and one upon which all and sundry have expressed views of late, particularly in rival publications. I was particularly moved by adjudicator Tony Bingham's failure to gain entry to Castle Human Rights (Building 22.9.00).
Where does the Human Rights Act stand on arbitration?

22-Mar-2001
There is no getting away from it: the Human Rights Act (HRA) has profound implications for us all. The Act is intended to make rights we have all enjoyed under the European Convention for Human Rights enforceable in the UK courts, rather than us having to make an expensive trip to the European Court of Human Rights in Strasbourg.
Complex case uncovers the true value of nitty-gritty

15-Mar-2001
For those of you who prefer law to chat you can not do much better than the case of Jarvis v Castle Wharf Developments (2001) raising as it does issues of professional duty, negligence and causation, set against a background of a sizeable and 'sensitive' development in Nottingham and almost impenetrably complex facts.
Do away with joint experts - who needs them anyway?

22-Feb-2001
When Lord Woolf first proposed that the cost of litigation could be cut if the courts were assisted by only one expert instead of the traditional ranks of experts proffered by each disputing party, some commentators objected fervently.
Form that now means more than just an end to construction

15-Feb-2001
The final certificate is, you might think, a straightforward document. It is, after all, the one that both parties to a JCT standard form of building contract have usually been waiting for longer than they would have thought possible.
Fighting fire with ire in a claim for subsidence damages

8-Feb-2001
At Bar School you are taught that in order to bring a successful claim for damages in the law courts you need the following ingredients:
Signing up for arbitration will not stop you going to court

1-Feb-2001
If your contract includes an arbitration clause, are you bound to take your dispute to arbitration or can you still go to court? Earlier editions of the JCT building contracts chose arbitration as the forum for dispute resolution, like it or not - and many did not. The current versions of the JCT forms allow the parties to choose between arbitration and litigation, with arbitration as the default option. Most building professionals, including architects, sign up to arbitration. Having ...
Back to the future: hierarchies and clerks fetching sandwiches

25-Jan-2001
In the old days a set of barristers chambers comprised about 10 barristers and one clerk.
Contractors may build defective designs but must warn of danger

11-Jan-2001
With the festivities over, one rifles through the debris of overindulgence and all manner of consumption and resolves to inject order and energy into one's life in the new year. Other columnists urge you to go to the gym, read Proust or to become a domestic goddess. (Not AJ columnists, I hasten to add, they are occupied with more aesthetic matters. ) Instead, I have a broader message and shall embrace 2001 under the slogan: 'Say No to Sloppiness.' This column is a good place to start ...
Witness the confusion - trade secrets of a cross examination

7-Dec-2000
Some words are music to the ears of a hardpressed barrister: others perhaps less so. 'You are in the Court of Appeal tomorrow, ' for example, is not good news, conjuring up images of a night spent mastering some knotty matter, where either events, or the Judge, went horribly wrong, and now, at short notice, the responsibility of persuading a demanding tribunal to put the whole thing back on the rails rests on your rather tense shoulders.
Good witness covered the sofa but not the expense of litigation

30-Nov-2000
Not so long ago I acted for a husband and wife in their claim against an interior design company. The claim involved a catalogue of complaints about misinterpretation of instructions, bad workmanship and poor accounting. There was some business about leather skins intended to cover the sofas, which I never got to the bottom of. On the day of the trial the interior designer arrived with two enormous rolls of what turned out to be the very leather in dispute. I learned two lessons of ...
Construction intentions can be lost in the repeating

23-Nov-2000
The Law Faculty at Warwick University rightly enjoys an outstanding reputation for teaching 'law in context' as opposed to the traditional 'black letter' law. During my time there as an undergraduate, lecturers strove to make law relevant to the context in which it was used, rather than teaching it straight out of a textbook.
No one told me construction law would be such backbreaking work

16-Nov-2000
As a bar student with an interest in construction law, I thought it would be a good idea to spend some time with a building company.
Human Rights Act has nothing to do with construction? If only. . .

9-Nov-2000
There are a few phrases that cause my heart to sink. One is 'who owns the float?' The question immediately conjures up images of critical path analysis, debate as to concurrent causes of delay, and let's face it, mind-bogglingly complicated contractors' claims for delay and disruption.
Expense of two counsels better value than a movie-style team

2-Nov-2000
American legal dramas such as Ally McBeal and Steve Bucho's excellent Murder One have introduced us all to the concept of 'second chair'.
Adjudicators in the ultimate case of mistaken arithmetic

26-Oct-2000
Fans of Douglas Adams' The Hitchhikers Guide to the Galaxy will know that the earth was no more than an elaborate computer created by an ancient race to discover the ultimate question.
Pre-action protocols are just another set of legal hoops

19-Oct-2000
Lord Woolf, you may remember, wanted to reduce the cost of litigation, and as such, swept away a 100 years of procedure and introduced the Civil Procedure Rules (CPR). Key cost-saving features of the CPR included a new test for pretrial disclosure of documents, the instruction by the parties of a single expert, and new stringent penalties, under Part 36, for failing to take up a good offer of settlement when one was made.
Compound interest adds a commercial edge to arbitration

5-Oct-2000
I visited the RIBA recently for a select gathering of the dispute resolution community. The 66 Portland Place building is a short hop from the Temple, where I work, particularly if you travel, as I usually do, by bicycle. During my visit, I was struck by a couple of things.
The devil is in the detail in the fiendish world of payments

21-Sep-2000
legal matters
Adjudication: heaven for some, but hell for homeowners

14-Sep-2000
Is adjudication a good thing? This question calls to mind a sketch from the popular '80s television programme Not the Nine O'clock News. Mel Smith, in the unlikely guise of a free-thinking clergyman, was interviewed while lolling, irreverently, on the steps of a place of worship. 'Is the devil bad?' the interviewer asked. 'Well', mused the modern minister, 'that is one of those theological grey areas. '
Arbitration picnic doesn't mean litigation cake is off the menu

3-Aug-2000
The Housing Grants Act says that a party to a construction contract has the right to refer a dispute to adjudication 'at any time'.What does this mean? The new statutory concoction of adjudication was, of course, first cooked up by Sir Michael Latham in his report into trouble-free construction procurement.
Trends suggest fast-moving courts can undercut adjudication

27-Jul-2000
Adjudication has been around for a bit now and the number of cases that have reached the courts has exceeded the 20 mark. Is it now possible to stand back and detect a few trends?
Fire protection for professionals signing up to joint insurance

13-Jul-2000
legal matters
Discovering a sites' buried treasures can be a drain

6-Jul-2000
I was asked recently to consider an issue of importance to construction designers - who is responsible for locating underground services?
Confusion over completion can result in a complete washout

29-Jun-2000
Practical completion - what a crazy idea! The courts and legal commentators alike have grappled with the notion of construction works which are nearly but not quite complete, or are notionally, but not actually, complete, or are apparently complete subject to the manifestation of latent defects.
Court of Appeal - be prepared for the unpredictable

22-Jun-2000
A famous lawyer and keen equestrian eventer once asked a fellow jockey, before the off at a point to point, whether he had ever been in the Court of Appeal. Anticipating the white-knuckle ride over the jumps, with an uncertain outcome and a real risk of personal injury was, he felt, the same as waiting to appear in the appellate court.
The limits of the law - when are you out of danger from liability?

15-Jun-2000
The law of limitation determines how long a claimant has to bring a claim. It is a bit of a minefield, particularly for design professionals. The problem lies in the various limitation periods which may apply to the common enough arrangement between and employer and architect for the design of a building and the administration of the construction contract.
A lifetime of understanding is not enough to play adjudicator

1-Jun-2000
Well, it finally paid off. Those interminable conferences attended on the subject, that summer's day, a year or so ago, spent in close-knit workshops, pontificating upon one's likely response to unlikely situations, that terrifying multiple choice examination on the laws (which, rumour has it, the senior partner of a well-known construction law firm, failed), and all the endless talking about it afterwards.
Contractual love triangles are being repeated ad infinitum

25-May-2000
There are, so we are told, only a handful of plot lines from which to create any drama: boy meets girl, rags to riches, good conquers evil, the love triangle and small troll-like being goes on a long journey and meets a variety of strange creatures are just the more familiar ones. (There is of course my tale of passion and naked ambition set against a construction law background involving concrete and the JCT standard forms - but that is another story. ) I had cause to think about the ...
Want a much easier tactic than wielding an injunction? Try war

18-May-2000
Injunctions or court orders which require someone to stop doing something crop up in all walks of legal life. You find them in matrimonial law, usually ordering violent men to stop beating their women or, less commonly, ordering them out of the family home. In employment law, injunctions are granted to stop well-informed employees from setting up on their own on their former employers' doorsteps. In commercial law the turbo-powered 'Mareva' injunction is invoked to prevent would-be ...
Wronged individuals have to wait for the sympathy of judges

27-Apr-2000
legal matters
When the hurly burly's done and the battle's lost and won

20-Apr-2000
legal matters
Warning: building contracts can seriously damage your life

6-Apr-2000
legal matters
The importance of finding the right sort of expertise for court

16-Mar-2000
Experts are brought in when things go wrong.
Improving arbitration's quality with good behaviour badges

9-Mar-2000
Legal matters
Portcullis proves public works regulations exist for a reason

24-Feb-2000
legal matters
The importance of finding the right sort of expertise for court

16-Feb-2000
legal matters
Choosing an adjudicator can be as painful as the dispute itself

10-Feb-2000
legal matters
Joint-names insurance can mean your profits go up in smoke

3-Feb-2000
legal matters
No excuse for contractors not doing their legal homework

13-Jan-2000
legal matters
Liquidation and the gothic kitchen gargoyle. Who pays?

16-Dec-1999
legal matters
It's all change as barristers celebrate marriage a la mode

2-Dec-1999
legal matters
An unsentimental education in the law of pupil and pupil-master

11-Nov-1999
legal matters
Homeowners are getting a mature, attractive new contract

4-Nov-1999
legal matters
How to tell your adjudications from your arbitrations

21-Oct-1999
legal matters
Getting contractors to do the job properly is no joke

7-Oct-1999
legal matters
Is getting more women into arbitration asking for the moon?

23-Sep-1999
legal matters
Law can be more inconvenient than inconvenience itself

14-Sep-1999
legal matters
Charting the rise of experts - paid to master complexity

2-Sep-1999
legal matters
Law cannot be independent; impartial is the best it can get

26-Aug-1999
legal matters
Adjudication is a quick-fix solution, not a legal substitute

12-Aug-1999
'The industry was ... secretly flattered that the government was prepared to treat it as a special case'
Informality lends itself to speedy, low-cost resolutions

29-Jul-1999
legal matters
Those with responsibility now stand alone - and liable

22-Jul-1999
legal matters
Does size matter? When it comes to unpaid debt it does

8-Jul-1999
Legal Matters
An attempt to stimulate the industry's blood circulation

1-Jul-1999
Legal matters
Challenging an adjudicator's decision may be a long process

17-Jun-1999
legal matters
It's good to talk... directly to your barrister

10-Jun-1999
legal matters
Why the drive for justice can be quicker in neutral

3-Jun-1999
legal matters
From now on, a different view of the Temple

20-May-1999
legal matters
Woolf at the door for Latin lovers as legal jargon is abolished

6-May-1999
legal matters
The case for and against a court-appointed expert

29-Apr-1999
legal matters
Adjudication survives its first legal challenge

8-Apr-1999
legal matters
The right of recovery is a lottery if you have no contract

1-Apr-1999
Last week we saw how a potential defendant might gamble on the type of damage a plaintiff is likely to suffer before deciding whether to risk liability in tort. Recent developments in this area have been so dramatic that, in the absence of a contract, the very existence of a right of recovery against a wrongdoer might be seen as something of a lottery.
When the duty to warn can become a liability

25-Mar-1999
I have warned previously that inappropriate labels and misconstrued words can cause disputes (aj 23.7.98). Further support for this was recently provided by clients of mine who owned a horse-riding concern. They asked concrete suppliers to provide concrete to a specification suitable for a 'stable floor'. The suppliers, oblivious to the fact that the customer wanted to concrete over the yard and to provide hard standing for horse lorries and other heavy equine traffic, gave a specification ...
The importance of getting agreement between experts

18-Mar-1999
Legal matters
Celebrating a judge who has left his mark on construction

11-Mar-1999
So prolific was [Lord Denning's] work that a glance at only two early volumes of the Building Law Reports revealed three of his judgments on construction which shaped the law of tort, contract and professional negligence
Celebrating a judge who left his mark on construction

11-Mar-1999
Apparently, when asked to identify a living artist, the best most of us can do is to name Rolf Harris. Would we fare any better if called upon to name a living judge? The judiciary do hit the headlines from time to time, but usually for the wrong reasons. Although the offending words of their misguided judgments (or the salacious details of their nocturnal escapades) may be discussed, Harry Enfield-style, in public houses across the country, their names are quickly forgotten. Lawyers ...
The case for pleadings

7-Jan-1999
Legal matters

Architects JournalKim Franklin

Architects Journal
Kim Franklin