Keating Chambers is the “go-to” set for construction disputes. We are widely regarded by clients as being “unrivalled at the construction bar”. With unparallelled expertise in this area, our “outstanding silks and juniors” are specialist advocates, committed to providing the best legal and strategic advice, tailored to dealing with the commercial pressures specific to the construction industry.
Over our 70-year history, we have been involved in the world’s best-known construction projects and uncountable landmark disputes. Barristers at Keating Chambers continue to regularly represent clients in the TCC, Court of Appeal and Supreme Court. Our members have an unparalleled ability to handle disputes involving complex technical issues. Their expertise is augmented by experience in construction professional negligence and disputes in other project-related sectors such as energy, offshore construction, and infrastructure.
Types of disputes
Barristers at Keating Chambers are regularly appointed to act for developers, employers, funders, contractors and subcontractors, and we are well versed in all the stages of construction disputes: from procurement issues and early initial advisory work, to mediation, adjudication (including enforcement) and litigation or arbitration. Our members appear in the UK Courts, primarily the TCC and Commercial Court, and in international arbitration disputes, frequently in relation to contracts governed by foreign law. We are familiar with domestic and international, and on- and offshore, standard forms of contract, and contract structures such as PFI & PPP.
Whether the issue relates to delay and disruption, defects or termination, our members’ experience covers all manner of construction project, including buildings (commercial and residential properties, hotels, sky scrapers, stadiums), energy projects (power plants, solar farms, windfarms, battery storage), infrastructure and utilities (airports, bridges, hospitals, railways, roads, schools, universities), and marine related disputes (dredging contracts, flood defences, FPSOs, sub-sea installations). They are well-versed in the technical aspects of cases, such as design and construction related issues, and also deal with regulatory matters and contractual interpretation.
Our members also regularly act in disputes relating to the Building Safety Act, Building Liability Orders, fire safety, and related limitation issues, and have been instructed in all the leading cases on these matters to reach the UK courts.
Industry Recognition
The talent of our members and the dedication of our staff are reflected in the multitude of awards that we have won in this area and in Chambers’ success in the directories. Keating Chambers has been top-ranked in construction by both The Legal 500 and Chambers UK Bar Guide for many years. Most recently, Chambers secured all three construction awards at the 2023 Chambers & Partners awards, winning construction set, silk and junior of the year. Our clients have commented that barristers “invariably understand the client’s business and key commercial drivers” and that Keating Chambers is “the best set for construction and engineering disputes”.
Cases involving members of Chambers are regularly featured in The Lawyer’s “Top 20 Cases” of the year. Examples include:
- 2024: Shepherd Construction v Kingspan and others - The dispute (worth in the region of £70m) will be one of the first to consider the new cause of action against cladding manufacturers under s149 of the Building Safety Act.
- 2022: Northumbria Healthcare NHS Foundation Trust & Ors v Lendlease Construction (Europe) Ltd & Ors – A long-running dispute, involving 15 separate parties, which arose out of a multi-million-pound PFI project to build a new specialist emergency care hospital.
- 2021: WM Morrisons Supermarkets PLC v Lorien Engineering Solutions Ltd – Case concerning alleged defects in the abattoir chilling processes affected meat quality and profits.
Thought Leadership
Members of Keating Chambersare renowned thought leaders and often contribute to the development of technical knowledge through publishing authoritative texts, delivering webinars and lectures, and taking part in high-profile legal conferences worldwide.
They are the authors of the seminal practitioner textbook in the field, Keating on Construction Contracts (12th Edition forthcoming), a publication to which circa 40 members of Keating Chambers contribute. Members also edit the Construction Law Reports. Other key industry texts include Keating on Offshore Construction & Marine Engineering, the Construction Dispute Resolution Handbook, and contract-focussed texts such as Keating on NEC, Keating on JCT and the FIDIC Red Book.
In 2023, Keating Chambers launched a podcast mini-series to celebrate 150 years of the Technology & Construction Court, releasing five episodes discussing some of the key cases in which the TCC has influenced the development of the law.
Our members are heavily involved in the leading organisations in the industry and are members of the Technology and Construction Bar Association (“TECBAR”), the Society of Construction Law (“the SCL”) and the Commercial Bar Association (“COMBAR”). James Frampton sits on the SCL Astra Committee.
