Construction analysis: Francis Ho, head of construction at Olswang, explores consortium bidding, including the benefits of consortium bidding, when it is most commonly encountered and the issues to be aware of.

Construction analysis: The court refused permission for a defendant engineer to amend its plea of contributory negligence on the part of the claimant contractor (who claimed that the engineer’s design was defective). The engineer sought to rely on the negligence of a sub-contractor in carrying out the works, arguing that the contractor was liable for those works as it owed a non-delegable duty to a neighbour to support its property—this failed as such a duty only arose between landowners. A claim that a non-delegable duty was owed because the works were exceptionally hazardous would also fail—the high threshold was not met. Further, even if the contractor owed a non-delegable duty, it would not mean it had been contributorily negligent—contributory negligence was about the contractor preventing harm to itself, not others.

Landlord’s notice Where a lease is to contract out of sections 24 to 28 of the Landlord and Tenant Act 1954 (LTA 1954), the landlord is required to serve a ‘landlord’s warning notice’ on the tenant. A warning notice must also be served if the landlord and tenant agree that the tenancy shall be surrendered as set out in an agreement. In practice, this step is usually taken by the landlord’s solicitor. LTA 1954, s 38A sets out the steps that the parties must take if their agreement

This Q&A looks at whether a party can correct mistakes in a pay less notice that was given in response to a default payment notice for a final account. We have focused on the position under the Joint Contracts Tribunal (JCT) forms of contract or similar contracts which contain provisions for the final account to become final and conclusive after a defined period. We have also assumed the mistakes are substantive in nature rather than, for example, merely typographical. The payee (ie the party receiving the payment and therefore the pay less notice) cannot correct mistakes in a pay less notice. If the payee disagrees with the contents of a pay less notice and wishes to challenge the same, its only options are to refer the dispute to adjudication or to litigate the same in court or arbitration (depending on what is provided for in the contract). Where there are time limits or other conditions

This Practice Note examines the statutory minimum period of notice required to terminate the contract of employment (notice given by employer or employee). The Minimum Notice and Terms of Employment Act 1973 (Ireland) (MNTEA 1973 (IRL)) provides for a statutory minimum period of notice that must be given to bring a contract of employment to an end, except where one of the parties is entitled to terminate without notice due to the misconduct of the other party. As the right is in relation to a contract of employment only, the right to statutory minimum notice applies only in relation to employees (not somebody working under a contract for service) who have been in continuous employment for at least 13 weeks including apprentices. A contract of employment may set out the notice that an employee is entitled to, however, the law sets out a minimum entitlement for employees, depending on the length of the employment. If the statutory minimum period of notice differs from the contractual notice, the employee is entitled to whichever is the greater. The

SCHEDULE Bond Number [insert] Dated: Parties 1 The Employer: [insert] incorporated in [England and Wales] (Company Number [insert]) whose registered office is at [insert]. 2 The Contractor: [insert] incorporated in [England and Wales] (Company Number: [insert]) whose registered office is at [insert]. 3 The Surety: [insert] incorporated in [England and Wales] (Company Number [insert]) whose registered office is at [insert]. (A) The Building Contract: The contract dated [insert] between the Employer and the Contractor for the construction of [insert] (the “Works”). (B) The Advance Payment: £[insert] to be paid by the Employer to the Contractor under clause [insert] of the Building Contract. (C) Maximum Bond Amount: The aggregate amount of £[insert] less an amount equivalent to any amount(s) of the Advance Payment that may from time to time be repaid by the Contractor to the Employer. (D) Expiry Date: [The date of practical completion/making good defects of the Works in accordance with the Building Contract/other long stop date] (E) Insolvent/Insolvency: [Insert corresponding definition from the Building Contract] This Advance Payment Bond (the “Bond”) comprises the Schedule attached at the beginning of this document and the following terms and conditions. 1 Words and phrases defined in the Schedule

This Guarantee is made the [insert date] day of [insert month] 20[insert year] Parties 1 [insert name] (Company No. [insert number]) [of OR whose registered office is at] [insert address] (the ‘Guarantor’). 2 [insert name] (Company No. [insert number]) [of OR whose registered office is at] [insert address] (together with its successors and assigns, the ‘Contractor’). Background (A) By a contract dated [insert date] (the ‘Contract’) and made between (1) [insert name] (the ‘Employer’) and (2) the Contractor, the Contractor has agreed to execute and complete certain works (‘the Works’) upon the terms and conditions contained in the Contract. (B) The Employer has agreed to procure the provision of a guarantee in the terms hereof (the ‘Guarantee’). The Employer is a wholly owned subsidiary of the Guarantor. (C) The Guarantor has agreed to guarantee the Employer’s

’Protected rights’ were the benefits which schemes contracted-out on a money purchase basis had to provide, before 6 April 2012, to contracted-out members in lieu of the state benefits foregone as a consequence of contracting-out. For more information on contracting-out, see Practice Note: What does ‘contracting-out’ mean for pension lawyers? Contracting-out on a money purchase basis (or DC contracting out) first became possible in April 1988, but was abolished on 6 April 2012. The abolition meant that, on and from 6 April 2012, it ceased to be possible to accrue protected rights and the statutory restrictions applicable to protected rights accrued before that date ceased to apply. In effect, this means that former protected rights can be treated as normal scheme benefits, save to the extent that the scheme rules provide otherwise. For more information, see Practice Note: Abolition of DC contracting-out [Archived]. Which schemes could contract out on a money purchase basis? Before 6 April 2012, protected rights could be provided by the following schemes: • contracted-out money purchase (COMP) schemes, including

This Practice Note provides guidance on multi-party and/or multi-contract arbitrations pursuant to the Hong Kong International Arbitration Centre (HKIAC) Administered Arbitration Rules 2018 (the 2018 HKIAC Rules; HKIAC 2018). As discussed in Practice Note: HKIAC (2018)—the HKIAC Administered Arbitration Rules—application and key features, the 2018 HKIAC Rules apply (generally) to HKIAC arbitrations commenced on or after 1 November 2018, unless the parties agree otherwise; for HKIAC arbitrations commenced before 1 November 2018, the 2013 HKIAC Rules will apply (generally), unless the parties agreed otherwise. Note that the consolidation and single arbitration/multiple contracts provisions discussed below do not apply where the relevant arbitration agreement was concluded before 1 November 2013, unless the parties agree otherwise (HKIAC 2018, art 1.5). For an introduction to the HKIAC and its structure, see Practice Note: HKIAC—background to and structure of the institution. Traditionally, arbitration is based upon a contract between two or more parties where only those parties can be subject to the arbitration. This has led to situations where a party faces multiple

This Practice Note looks at the ICE Dispute Board Procedure, which the parties to a construction contract can agree to adopt as a dispute resolution procedure (whether or not the HGCRA 1996 applies). A dispute board is a panel appointed to assist in the resolution of disputes which arise under a construction contract. See Practice Note: Dispute boards—what are they and what are their advantages and disadvantages?. A dispute board aims to facilitate the swift resolution of disputes without the parties having to resort to court proceedings or arbitration. Several organisations publish rules relating to dispute boards and some contracts, including FIDIC, provide for disputes to be decided by a dispute board (see Practice Notes: FIDIC contracts 2017—Dispute Avoidance/Adjudication Boards and FIDIC contracts (pre-2017 editions)—dispute adjudication boards). The ICE Dispute Board Procedure The Institution of Civil Engineers (ICE) offers a number of dispute resolution services, and publishes standard procedures for resolving disputes, including the ICE Dispute Board Procedure. The ICE Dispute Board Procedure sets out rules for appointing a dispute board, referring a dispute, the conduct of

This Practice Note considers ways in which a distribution agreement can be terminated, including rights to terminate a distribution agreement under common law on notice, for breach or termination using the specific termination provisions in the distribution agreement. Guidance is provided on termination for breach of contract and how to give effective notice to terminate a distribution agreement. In addition, this Practice Note considers the types of termination rights that can be included in a written distribution agreement, what happens on termination and whether any ongoing obligations continue after termination including confidentiality undertakings and post-termination restrictions. Distribution agreements, like other commercial relationships, are not intended to last indefinitely. They should be capable of continuing for as long as both parties receive mutual benefit from an arrangement and the arrangement complies with relevant legislation. A fully considered commercial arrangement should anticipate that, when it no longer serves a commercial purpose, it will require termination. The legal mechanism for termination should be a key drafting consideration in any distribution agreement. Supplier considerations A supplier will want to retain

This Practice Note provides an introduction to bailment, which is a large and complex topic. This Practice Note provides a working definition of bailment and practical tips. It discusses modern commercial bailment, how bailment is created, the bailor and bailee and obligations arising between them. Bailment under contract is outlined, together with limitation of liability and incorporation of terms in bailment contracts. Bailments arising in hire purchase agreements, pawn and pledge arrangements, the hospitality industry and international transport are briefly discussed. Non-contractual bailment is introduced and issues with mistaken deliveries and uncollected goods are outlined. Bailment disputes, remedies and actions against third parties are introduced. Tips in relation to pleading bailment are provided. Bailment defined Bailments can arise in a very wide range of circumstances, making a precise definition of what constitutes bailment, and a comprehensive classification of types of bailment, difficult. Simplistically, possession (or custody) of goods is a form of interest in or rights over goods, which can be distinguished from the ownership of goods. A bailment