Can a breach of one contract give rise to liability for lost profit on a related contract? Or is the loss too "remote"? A Privy Council decision from Monday of this week addressed this issue in the context of a design, build,...more
7/17/2020
/ Appeals ,
Arbitration Awards ,
Breach of Contract ,
British Virgin Islands ,
Construction Project ,
Damages ,
Design-Build-Operate (DBO) ,
Lost Profits ,
Procurement Guidelines ,
Reversal ,
UK ,
UK Privy Council
The offshore wind sector continues to grow at an unprecedented rate, particularly in Europe, and increasingly in Asia and North America. The construction phase of any project is vulnerable to delay. That is particularly the...more
7/15/2020
/ Asia ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Delays ,
Design Defects ,
EU ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Offshore Wind ,
Risk Allocation ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Severe Weather ,
Time Extensions ,
United States ,
Wind Power
Liquidated damages provisions in contracts are unenforceable if they constitute a "penalty". The past few years have seen subtle but important shifts in how the concept of a penalty is defined. A recent decision from the...more
The ongoing Scottish case of Serco Limited v Forth Health Limited highlights the difficulties that can arise when applying benchmarking and market testing provisions in long-term maintenance and service...more
A main contractor is often in a difficult position during project disputes, caught in the middle between its liabilities to the employer and its ability to recover those losses from its subcontractors. But, what happens when...more
Remeasurement provisions are commonly used in construction and engineering contracts where there is uncertainty as to the quantity of work to be performed by the contractor. Remeasurement may be desirable in these situations,...more
Amending standard forms of construction and engineering contracts to change the risk level between the parties is a perennial issue. This, however, can lead to disputes due to amendments not clearly reflecting the intention...more
2/28/2020
/ Amended Forms ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Industry ,
Contract Terms ,
Engineering ,
FIDIC Contracts ,
General Contractors ,
London Technology and Construction Court (TCC) ,
Public Procurement Policies ,
Risk Allocation ,
Standard Form Contracts ,
UK
When does title to goods transfer from a contractor to an employer? This can be a critical issue, especially when a party to a project has become insolvent. A recent English case considered this issue, and the application of...more
1/16/2020
/ Certification Requirements ,
Conditions of Payment ,
Construction Contracts ,
Contract Terms ,
Contractors ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
FIDIC Contracts ,
Goods or Services ,
Insolvency ,
Legal Title ,
Ownership Interest ,
Subcontractors ,
Transfer of Title ,
UK ,
Vesting
Restrictions on a contractor's rights to subcontract works are common across industry forms of contract, and breach of these provisions can have significant consequences for a contractor. In a recent Australian case, the...more
11/11/2019
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Industry ,
FIDIC Contracts ,
General Contractors ,
Non-Assignment Clauses ,
Restrictive Covenants ,
Risk Mitigation ,
Specific Performance ,
Standard Form Contracts ,
Subcontractors ,
UK
The case of Doosan Enpure Limited v Interserve Construction Limited represents a rare consideration by the English High Court of a dispute between members of a construction joint venture. The court found that Interserve was...more
10/14/2019
/ Breach of Contract ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Industry ,
Contract Disputes ,
Contract Terms ,
Interim Payments ,
Joint Venture ,
Land Developers ,
Profit Sharing ,
Real Estate Development ,
Risk-Sharing ,
UK
In Thio Keng Thay v Sandy Island Pte Ltd [2019] SGHC 175 the High Court of Singapore confirmed that an employer may recover damages for rectifying defects even when it has done so in breach of a contractual defects...more
In a recent case, the Federal Court of Australia confirmed that it will enforce a "no damage for delay" clause, including when delay occurs as a result of a variation under a contract....more
A recent decision by Singapore's highest court has held that a contractor must first establish that it is entitled to payment under the contract in order to claim progress payments under the Security of Payment Act, raising...more
Practical completion represents the physical completion of works on construction projects. Despite its importance, it is not a legal term of art, and whether or not practical completion has been achieved requires...more
4/6/2019
/ Appeals ,
Breach of Contract ,
Certification Requirements ,
Construction Contracts ,
Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Contractors ,
Dismissals ,
Landlords ,
Material Defects ,
Practical Completion ,
Property Owners ,
Student Housing ,
Tenants ,
UK
A "global" or "total cost" claim is one in which the damages calculation is derived from the total cost of the work incurred by a contractor, minus the bid amount. Such claims are increasingly used by contractors where...more
3/28/2019
/ Amended Complaints ,
Burden of Proof ,
Construction Contracts ,
Contract Terms ,
Damages ,
General Contractors ,
Lack of Specificity ,
Modification ,
Motion To Strike ,
Pleading Standards ,
Supreme Court of Western Australia ,
Total Cost Claims
The United Arab Emirates has introduced further reforms regulating the enforcement of foreign arbitral awards.
In the last year, the UAE has taken a significant step towards aligning the UAE's arbitration laws with...more
In a noteworthy decision to participants in the energy industry, the High Court of England & Wales examined what constitutes a valid liquidated damages clause in the event of delayed completion of a solar project. And last...more
1/12/2019
/ Construction Project ,
Contract Terms ,
Contractors ,
Delay Claims ,
Employer Liability Issues ,
Energy Projects ,
International Litigation ,
Late Payments ,
Liquidated Damages ,
Liquidation ,
Pay-For-Delay ,
Penalties ,
Power Plants ,
Remedies ,
Renewable Energy ,
Singapore ,
Solar Energy ,
UK