Publications
Our lawyers contribute regularly to industry, insurance and legal journals including Building, Post Magazine and Solicitors Journal. In addition we write legal briefings, newsletters and case reports on our main practice areas.
Published and other articles are free and may be downloaded in PDF format.
See our most recent articles below or use the search function to find publications by practice area and/or keyword.
Salutary Lessons
October 2009
Nick Gillies
Costain is the TCC’s latest professional negligence decision. The judgment offers salutary lessons for consultants and their legal advisors and demonstrates the court’s willingness to punish unreasonable conduct through costs orders.
Changes to rules on expert evidence
October 2009
Antony Smith
Important amendments to Part 35 of the Civil Procedure Rules came into force in England and Wales on 1 October 2009 which include changes to the rules regarding expert evidence. This document outlines the main changes.
Solicitors’ Professional Indemnity Insurance
September 2009
Stephen Chessher and Michelle Kilroy
Changes to Irish Minimum Terms
The end of the Irish property boom has resulted in an unprecedented rise in both the number and size of negligence claims against solicitors arising out of property transactions. This has coincided with a reduction in insurers’ investment returns and is expected to result in very substantially higher premiums for solicitors across the board when policies are renewed on 1 December 2009.
Against this background, a special Law Society of Ireland Task Force was set up earlier this year to consider how best to ensure that professional indemnity insurance cover remains generally available to solicitors at rates that are not ruinous. In order to contain premium rises as far as possible, the Task Force proposed changes both to reduce the level of compulsory cover and to enable insurers to impose additional exclusions. Those changes have now been approved by the Council of the Law Society and have been brought into force by the Solicitors Acts 1954 to 2008 (Professional Indemnity Insurance) (Amendment) Regulations 2009 (‘the Regulations’) and the Minimum Terms and Conditions prescribed by the Regulations. Unless otherwise stated, the changes will apply as from renewal on 1 December 2009.
These changes are outlined in the attached document.
Take the fifth: Liability for design mistakes
25 September 2009
Rachel Barnes
Publication: Building
If you’re an architect, and you suddenly realise that you’ve made a mistake, do you have a duty to tell your client about it? Well, that all depends.
Action Stations
15 September 2009
Antony Smith, Marc Jones
Publication: Solicitors Journal
Practitioners must ensure their client holds the right to sue and should act quickly if the limitation expiry date is near, say Antony Smith and Marc Jones.
ACE Agreements 2009 - Amendments
25 August 2009
Rachel Barnes
The ACE has published some amendments to some of its Agreements and one of its Services Schedules. Rachel Barnes gives details of these amendments, where to find them and how to use them.
What happens to collateral warranties if the client goes into liquidation?
August 2009
Rachel Barnes
Griffiths & Armour have recently received queries concerning the position of consultants in respect of collateral warranties when their clients go into liquidation. We set out some general guidance about this.
Much ado about nothing
10 July 2009
Rachel Barnes
Publication: Building
Architects have been fighting the possible retraction of a 'no set-off' clause in the RIBA Standard Form of Agreement. But actually, for them the clause is almost meaningless.
The ACE Agreements 2009
3 July 2009
Rachel Barnes
The ACE have recently published revised Agreements and some new Agreements. Rachel Barnes gives a resume of these and describes which of the Agreements have been replaced and the main changes in the attached document.
CIC liability briefing on the implications of appointing subconsultants
June 2009
Constuction Industry Council
This Briefing looks at the advantages and disadvantages of a consultant being appointed to undertake services, and then engaging subconsultants to undertake some or all of those services.
Published with kind permission of the CIC.
Strategic Forum for Construction - 6 principles of best practice
June 2009
Constuction Industry Council
6 principles through which the construction industry will endeavour to achieve a better industry and achieve best practice
Employing migrant workers under the new UK immigration laws
June 2009
Lianne Shing
As the trend towards globalisation and mobility continues, and with the widening of the European Union, immigration and visa requirements are increasingly playing a large role in the recruitment process and in business considerations. Time frames are often important in recruiting personnel and those involved in recruitment now face additional pressures introduced by the radical overhaul of the UK's immigration laws which took place in 2008 and continue into 2009. The most significant changes will affect employers who wish to sponsor migrant workers to work in the UK.
Be Alert
May 2009
Beale and Company
Publication: Edition 1
The Professional Risks Bulletin from Beale and Company.
Novation to a design/build contractor
May 2009
Rachel Barnes
Why is the CIC Novation Agreement the correct basis for the novation of a consultant
There are two basic forms of novation agreement. The "ab initio" form (produced by the CLLS and often by clients) and the "switch" (produced by the CIC).
Langstane Housing Association Limited -v- Riverside Construction
May 2009
Rachel Barnes
A recent decision from the Outer House of the Scottish Court of Session offers helpful guidance to construction professionals when incorporating conditions of engagement by reference and useful judicial insight on the enforceability of the net contribution clauses and in particular the net contribution clause in the ACE 1998 Conditions.