‘Building owners or leaseholders with responsibility for repair and maintenance of the building’s structure and external walls will be liable for a criminal offence if they fail to register occupied “higher-risk buildings” in England between 6 April and 1 October 2023.’
OUT-LAW.com, 20th March 2023
Source: www.pinsentmasons.com
‘One of the major changes to the regulation of the design and construction of “higher-risk buildings” is the introduction of the gateway regime.’
Practical Law: Construction Blog, 8th March 2023
‘In a previous blog, I explored one aspect of the statutory reallocation of risk for the costs of works to remedy building safety issues in the Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022). The focus of that blog was the new landlord’s certificate, designed as a tool for the landlord to communicate with leaseholders as to whether it is “responsible” for defects, or whether it meets the “contribution condition” in the BSA 2022. In this blog, I will focus on the second element of this new framework, the “qualifying lease certificate” or “leaseholder certificate”. The relevant provisions of the BSA 2022 came into force on 28 June 2022, and the related regulations have been in force since 21 July 2022.’
Practical Law: Construction Blog, 25th January 2023
‘Michael Gove has admitted that “faulty and ambiguous” government guidance was partly responsible for the Grenfell Tower tragedy. The UK housing secretary said lax regulation allowed cladding firms to “put people in danger in order to make a profit”.’
The Guardian, 29th January 2023
Source: www.theguardian.com
‘Rupert Choat highlights standout developments in construction law over the last 12 months as we sought to emerge from the pandemic.’
Atkin Chambers, 16th December 2022
Source: www.atkinchambers.com
‘The Building Safety Act 2022 (BSA 2022) creates a whole new world of building safety regulation and litigation. A key legislative objective was to regulate and direct responsibility for the cost of works to remedy building safety issues, so that the risk of such costs could no longer be the subject of agreement between landlord and tenant, but would (in defined circumstances) be apportioned in advance, by law, to the landlord.’
Practical Law: Construction Blog, 16th November 2022
‘At the end of last month, Tom Coulson and Amy Armitage discussed the decision of Martlet Homes Ltd v Mulalley & Co Ltd, the first decision from the TCC on fire safety defects following the Grenfell Tower tragedy. This decision is highly significant for the construction industry, given the number of similar cases which are either progressing through the courts or at the pre-action stage. Although the judge emphasised the fact-specific nature of the dispute, this decision provided some insight on the court’s likely approach to some of the significant issues that affect cladding disputes.’
Practical Law: Construction Blog , 24th August 2022
‘This briefing considers debate about responsibility for paying for fire safety works on blocks of flats in the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire. It covers provisions in the Building Safety Act 2022.’
House of Commons Library, 9th June 2022
Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk
‘Chris Bryden and Georgia Whiting write in the April edition of Construction Law, examining case law surrounding the role of expert witnesses, which suggests a worrying trend towards a loosening of the established principles of how experts should behave, and are instructed.’
4KBW, 4th May 2022
Source: www.4kbw.co.uk
‘On 29 April 2022, the Building Safety Bill received Royal Assent and has become the Building Safety Act 2022 (the “BSA”). The BSA gives effect to policies set out in the Government response to the “Building a Safer Future” consultation, and Dame Judith Hackitt’s interim and final report undertaken as part of an independent review of building regulations and fire safety.’
Henderson Chambers, 3rd May 2022
Source: www.hendersonchambers.co.uk
‘The recent case of The Sky’s the Limit Transformation Ltd v Dr Mohammed Mirza [2022] outlines a judge’s view as to a way forward in resolving domestic building disputes in a time and cost effective manner.’
Mills & Reeve, 23rd February 2022
Source: www.mills-reeve.com
‘I appreciate that not everyone will agree but, as well as striving to get to the right answer, correctly applying the law, and so on, most adjudicators also want to provide the parties with a decision that is ultimately enforceable by the TCC. I think I also speak for most adjudicators when I say that it comes as somewhat of a relief when we read a judgment on BAILII or the like and we’ve been enforced.
But what about cases where only part of the decision is enforced, and the other part is severed? It is arguable that for the adjudicator it is, to use the language of the Black Knight in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, “just a flesh wound”. However, I can attest to the fact that it is frustrating, having been one of the first adjudicators to be severed back in 2012 in Beck Interiors v UK Flooring Contractors. I was thoroughly annoyed with myself for getting it wrong and only part of my decision was enforced (but I was assured by my peers that “tis but a scratch”).’
Practical Law: Construction Blog, 19th January 2022
‘New-build housing: construction defects – issues and solutions (England).’
House of Commons Library, 17th January 2022
Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk
‘The UK government has published several draft regulations designed to give parliamentarians a better idea of how the Building Safety Bill will be implemented.’
OUT-LAW.com, 21st October 2021
Source: www.pinsentmasons.com
‘A High Court judge has backed the Royal Parks in its battle to stop the removal of a boathouse on the north bank of the Serpentine lake in London’s Hyde Park. The ruling hinged on the question of whether a wooden structure erected by the operator of rowing and pedal boats forms part of Hyde Park and therefore belongs to the Crown.’
Law Society's Gazette, 23rd August 2021
Source: www.lawgazette.co.uk
‘Homeowners in low-rise apartment blocks are being told they must hand over life-changing sums because their flats could go up in flames, even though the government has claimed the buildings pose “no systemic risk” and don’t need to be fixed.’
The Independent, 22nd August 2021
Source: www.independent.co.uk
‘The recent decision in Mott vs Trant suggests the courts are unwilling to overrule clauses that exclude or limit liability, writes Sir Robert Akenhead, with assistance from David Johnson.’
Atkin Chambers, 4th August 2021
Source: www.atkinchambers.com
‘Second Reading of the Building Safety Bill (Bill 132 of 2021-22) is expected to take place on Wednesday 21 July.’
House of Commons Library, 16th July 2021
Source: commonslibrary.parliament.uk
‘Many changes have been introduced since Grenfell to address the cladding crisis including the establishment of various loans, funds, plans for new regulators, new taxes, levies and new rules to govern building safety throughout the lifetime of a building.’
Practical Law: Construction Blog, 13th July 2021
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