In English law, most contracts do not need to be in writing to be valid. However, not every conversation leads to a contract… so how do the courts draw the line? Tell-tale signs After a telephone call between two businesses, one claimed £1m in fees from the other for services
MF/1 is a balanced contract providing plenty of opportunities for the purchaser to check the performance of the works – through three series of tests – before the contractor is released from liability. It also clearly sets out limits on the contractor’s obligations. Limits on scope If you are acting
The Scottish appeal court has recently agreed with something I have been asserting for years, that a collateral warranty is impliedly limited by the scope and terms of the underlying agreement. What is a warranty? A warranty is a simple document designed to create contractual links between the provider of
The Global Construction Disputes Report 2019 (by Arcadis) confirms that failure to understand or comply with the contract is the number one cause of disputes globally. Professor Renato Nazzini, in his guest foreword says: It would be tempting to look for solutions in ever more complex, more detailed contractual documents
I went from nodding in agreement to shaking my head in just two sentences: A contract sets out the expectations of both the client and the contractor. A contract gives you the peace of mind that the contractor will deliver the project within an agreed timeframe, at an agreed cost
Do you want a tried and tested contract? Really? Tried before the courts because it wasn’t clear enough? Tested by years of use and abuse [read Ken Adams’ view on tested language in contracts]? One of those contracts which surveys have held stoke mistrust? Or one of the ones which
Retention has had its day… Unjustified late and non-payment of a retention is unacceptable BEIS Report October 2017 Or perhaps that is wishful thinking? Build UK is implementing the Construction Supply Chain Payment Charter to move to zero retentions by 2025 (although some more enlightened employers like Network Rail have
As with any new discipline, there are many ways of defining legal design. It is: A movement to make law more accessible, usable and engaging (Emma Jelley) A merger of legal and design thinking to improve processes and outcomes (Helena Haapio) Preventing legal problems and empowering the users (Stefania Passera)
Construction contracts and engineering contracts take a flexible approach to completion: time is not of the essence (if they were, then when the contractor was late the client could reject the works, plant or section and pay nothing) the original dates for completion of the work, plant or sections can
As well as contracts needing certain terms, Tessa Manuello says that legal design is aimed at creating documents which provide certainty for users in three areas: certainty of cost certainty of process certainty of outcome Cost certainty For construction contracts, ‘certainty of cost’ means your contract should provide certainty covering
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