This Practice Note looks at some of the key considerations that may need to be taken into account when a party to a construction contract is formulating the quantum aspects of a claim. It looks at considerations for common claims made under the contract (for example, in relation to loss and expense), as well as those where the dispute arises from a breach of contract or negligence claim (ie a claim for damages). This Practice Note also discusses common losses that may be recoverable, such as damages relating to defects claims, future losses, wasted management time, loss of a chance and third party settlement sums. Aside from ascertaining the recoverability and value of a loss itself, other relevant quantum considerations can include whether the claim for quantum should be presented as a ‘global claim’, mitigation and betterment issues, contributory negligence and contractual restrictions or exclusions. When it comes to the question of loss in a dispute, the burden of proof is on the claimant to prove both the fact of and the amount of its loss. For

This Practice Note explains the application of Contracts (Applicable Law) Act 1990 when considering whether the parties have chosen the applicable law for their contract. It considers a number of issues such as whether there is a requirement for the choice of applicable law to be in writing and to be for the law of a country and whether the parties may split the applicable law. The mandatory rules (domestic/foreign/international) which limit the applicable law are also set out. To determine whether the applicable law regime set out in C(AL)A 1990 applies, see Practice Note: Understanding applicable law—a guide for dispute resolution practitioners. For guidance: • as to the application and interpretation of the act, see Practice Note: Contracts (Applicable Law) Act 1990—application and interpretation • on the approach when the parties have failed to choose the applicable law, see Practice Note: Contracts (applicable law) Act 1990—parties fail to choose the applicable law C(AL)A 1990, Sch 1 sets out a modified form of the Rome Convention as applied

1 Term-time working 1.1 Your normal hours of work are: 1.1.1 [20] hours per week, to be worked during the hours of [9:00am] to [1:00pm] on [Monday to Friday] inclusive[ with a daily [paid OR unpaid] lunch break of [one hour]]; 1.1.2 to be worked [for [39] weeks per year, ]during the term-time for [ [and in-service training (INSET) days ]for the school OR for your[ youngest] child’s school OR for the local authority in which you live] only. 1.2 [You will not be required to work during the school holidays for [the school OR your child’s school OR the local authority in which you live] [, or during any in-service training (INSET) days for your [ [youngest ]child’s school OR your children’s schools] ].]

1 Drug and alcohol screening 1.1 In order to ensure the safety of all its staff and others, and to comply with applicable legislation, the Company operates a drug and alcohol screening programme[, including random drug

Commercial analysis: Had the defendant repudiated or renounced the contract? Scott Atkins, lecturer in law at the Truman Bodden Law School, Cayman Islands, considers the implication of terms into contracts in an agreement in One Fish Co Ltd v Iceland Foods Ltd.

This Practice Note provides an introduction to employment law applied by employment tribunals and courts in Scotland. In particular, it looks at: • the extent to which statutory employment law made by the UK parliament applies in Scotland in the way it does in England and Wales, and • the similarities and differences between contract law principles applied in Scotland and those applied in England and Wales The functions of the Scottish employment tribunals and the EAT in Scottish cases are subject to a ‘qualified transfer’ to Scotland which means that an Order in Council must be made for the transfer of responsibility to the Scottish Parliament to take effect. The Scottish Government carried out a consultation on a draft Order in 2016. The position remains that the Scottish government is waiting for a draft Order in Council from Westminster. At present there is no working date for the transfer of functions to take place. The substantive law that is applied by those tribunals therefore remains unchanged—for further information on the substantive law

Where the employee has given notice of termination in accordance with the contract of employment, and the employer chooses to terminate the contract of employment early by giving counter-notice of termination to the employee during the notice period: • this will not ordinarily amount to a breach of contract by the employer, provided the employer complies with his obligations as to statutory and contractual notice (and other contractual

This Practice Note presents the thresholds values for the applicability of EU public procurement Directives and their legal basis. Relevance and setting of thresholds The EU public procurement Directives apply to contracts whose contract value does not fall below the thresholds specified in the respective Directive (see Practice Note: The applicability of EU public procurement. These provisions are set out in: • Article 4 of Directive 2014/24/EU, the EU Public Contracts Directive • Article 15 of Directive 2014/25/EU, the EU Utilities Directive • Article 95 of the EU Utilities Directive also provides a threshold for design contests organised as part of a procurement procedure for services over the set threshold. The threshold is the estimated value net of VAT of the service contract, including any possible prizes and/or payments to participants • Article 8 of Directive 2014/23/EU, the EU Concession Directive • Article 8 of Directive 2009/81/EC—Directive on defence and sensitive security procurement The

Stop Press: On 24 February 2025, the main provisions of the Public Procurement Act 2023 (PA 2023) come into force. We are reviewing and updating our content accordingly. Note, however, that procurements begun on or after 24 February must be carried out under PA 2023, whereas those begun under the previous legislation (the Public Contracts Regulations 2015 (PCR 2015), the Utilities Contracts Regulations 2016, the Concession Regulations 2016, and the Defence and Security Public Contracts Regulations 2011) must continue to be procured and managed under that legislation. For information, see Practice Note: Key Implications of the procurement Act 2023 for Construction Lawyers. Brexit impact—public procurement The UK public procurement regime derives from EU public procurement laws, and is therefore impacted by the UK’s withdrawal from the EU. For general updates on the process and preparations for Brexit, see Practice Note: Brexit timeline. For further reading on the impact of Brexit on public procurement, see Practice Note: Brexit—the implications for public procurement [Archived]. Of particular relevance to the variation of public contracts are the Public Contracts Regulations (PCR 2015), SI 2015/102, which implemented

Where an agreement with an individual contracting as an independent contractor (consultancy or contractor agreement) contains an indemnity in respect of any statutory employment claims the individual might bring against the company based on employee or worker status, the effectiveness of that indemnity may be limited in two ways, as set out eg in the drafting notes to clause 9.2 of Precedent: Consultancy agreement—company and individual—pro-client. Prohibition on contracting out The first is that, in relation to claims relating to the individual’s statutory rights as an employee, if the substance and not the form of the clause is considered, the indemnity could be considered void as a result of the prohibition on contracting out, eg in section 203 of the Employment Rights Act 1996 (ERA 1996). For more information on contracting out provisions generally, see the section

In answering this Q&A, we note that it refers to the existence of a damages based agreement (DBA) between solicitor and client and that it is this which the client seeks to ‘nullify’. We have, therefore, considered the application of general contract law provisions with regard to voiding contracts and, additionally, when contracts might give rise to a claim (or counterclaim) for damages for breach of any professional duties of care by the solicitors. Voidable contract We assume by ‘nullified’ this Q&A is referring to whether the contract is voidable. A voidable contract is one that a party is entitled to rescind, or to have set aside by the court, by reason of some external act or event that precedes the contract

Commercial analysis: This judgment considers the inter-relationship between contractual rights of termination and repudiatory breach, and the circumstances in which a contractual code can affect common law rights to terminate. In finding that the contract entered into between the parties did not exclude the common law right to terminate for repudiatory breach of contract, the court considered the alleged breaches relied upon by the defendant in turn to determine whether a right to terminate had arisen. The court’s conclusion was that the claimant had not been in repudiatory breach when the notice of termination was issued by the defendant, and accordingly the claimant’s claim for unpaid invoices succeeded, with further determination of damages arising from termination to be assessed in a later hearing. Written by Ryan Turner, barrister at Lamb Chambers.