A few years ago, a developer (Gubbins) appointed an engineering firm (Grimes) for a housing development. Grimes agreed to design a road and the drainage, and obtain the relevant s38 agreement (for adoption of the road by the local authority). That work had to be completed by March 2007. It
What should your contracts try and do? My 500-word contracts are designed to build trust, and safeguard your business without annoying your clients. Being Too Literal One of the concerns of any person writing a contract is to ensure that the contract is interpreted as the parties intend. Not just
Imagine you own a patisserie in London and part of your shopfront falls onto a passing pedestrian (a whole family of them). If you had recently had works done to your shopfront then, as the shopowner who is good with patisserie and not really a connoisseur of construction, you might
You may have heard that under English laws, individuals and companies have ‘freedom to contract’. But what does that jargon mean? Freedom to contract has several aspects: you can choose whether you enter into a contract, and with which persons (party freedom, or freedom to contract); you can choose the
As a contract drafting lawyer, you might think that asking you to consider ‘should you bother with contracts?’ is a little like asking the proverbial turkey to vote for Thanksgiving or Christmas! Construction contracts in the UK have been around for about 150 years, with published standard forms a product
It has been said (although not by me) that one aims for contracts is to take account of eventualities that can be foreseen, and to ensure that the intentions of the parties are expressed clearly, with certainty, and that the allocation of risks is as intended. But what is the
I hate to make assumptions or to speculate wildly, but… I have a sneaking suspicion that you don’t always understand your contracts. My hunch? When I wrote this post in 2013, my evidence was largely anecdotal. It came from: lawyers’ websites which state that ‘clients do not understand exactly what
A construction project can be divided into distinct phases. This blog reviews the key decision crunchpoints (see also my slideshare stages of a construction project). From the Start The project begins when a client considers she has a business need which may be met by developing new premises. Action: Investigate
In 2013, you couldn’t fail to be aware of the debate going on in the media as a result of the announcement from Carillion that it was going to extend its payment terms for subcontractors to 120 days. Buy why does it matter so much? Cashflow is king As far
How can you make sure your terms and conditions (T&C) get into your contracts? Sometimes you’ll need to win the battle of the forms (read more), but a better approach is to get your contract/proposal/T&C signed in person or accepted by email. A lazy process? When you agree with another