Construction

TCC150 SERIES: EPISODE 5 – Alfred McAlpine Construction V Panatown [2000]

This is the last in our series of podcasts to mark 150 years of the Technology and Construction Courts, a series where we have highlighted some of the key cases where the TCC has influenced the development of the law.

In this episode, Tom Lazur, Brenna Conroy and Charlie Thompson look into the legal black hole and the case of Alfred McAlpine Construction v Panatown, a judgment handed down in 2000. It is one of the few cases where the issue came before the House of Lords twice in relatively short order with St Martins Property v Sir Robert McAlpine having been decided 6 years earlier. The case was focussed on the unusual effect of the application of two legal principles: (1) privity of Contract and (2) the Rule of Damages.

Tom, Brenna and Charlie discuss the development of the law prior to it reaching a construction context and the background in the McAlpine case before looking at the House of Lords approach in Panatown. They look at the two opposing philosophies demonstrated in this case (the black letter lawyer approach vs the judge led by the merits) and consider what might happen if this sort of issue reached the Supreme Court now.

TCC150 Series: Episode 4 - Marchant v Caswell [1976]

This is the fourth in a series of podcasts coming this year, all recorded to celebrate 150 years of the Technology and Construction Court (TCC). In each episode, Keating barristers will choose one leading case from the TCC and review its significance.
In this special episode Sam Townend KC chairs a discussion between counsel who acted in the first reported case on ten year new-build home insurance policies, Marchant v Caswell [1976] 2 EGLR 23, Lord Grabiner KC (One Essex Court), Professor John Uff KC, and Dr Christopher Thomas KC. The participants explain the key facts and summarise the principles derived from the case as well as discussing practice in the 1970s and the development of the TCC in the last 50 years.

Please see below the time stamps of this episode:

0:00 - Introduction
3.59 - Case summary
9.43 - Introduction of speakers
18.35 - First Issue- whether the ten year new-build home warranty is a covenant running with the land?
26.03 - Second Issue- whether liability under the Policy is triggered by notice of minor damage?
32.43 - Third Issue- whether actual or constructive notice is sufficient to trigger liability, notwithstanding an express requirement for notice in writing?
40.06 - Fourth Issue- enforceability of the arbitration agreement in a consumer insurance policy
43.02 – Consequentials
45.05- Practice in the 1970s and the development of the TCC

TCC150 Series: Episode 3 - Martlet Homes Limited v Mulalley & Co. Limited [2022]

This is the third in a series of podcasts coming this year, all recorded to celebrate 150 years of the Technology and Construction Court (TCC). In each episode, Keating barristers will choose one leading case from the TCC and review how it has faired over the years, including discussion of subsequent cases that have focused on it.

In this episode James Thompson, Tom Coulson, Tom Walker and Isobel Kamber have taken a slightly different approach to the series and discuss one of the most significant judgments in  very recent case law history, Martlet Homes Limited v Mulalley & Co. Limited [2022]. This is the first decision from the TCC on Fire Safety (External Wall Insulation or “EWI”) following the Grenfell Tower fire in June 2017. The dispute concerned fire safety defects in the external walls of five high-rise towers in Gosport, Hampshire. They discuss the impact of the judgment on the construction industry and its insurers. In a precedent setting decision, the Judge provided clear guidance on the courts’ assessment of the law of causation and what “caused” the cladding to be replaced.

James, Tom C., Tom W. and Isobel also discuss additional and important cases since Martlet v Mulalley, including St James's Oncology v Lendlease and LDC (Portfolio One) Ltd v (1) George Downing Construction [2022] and how the courts are continuing to take a robust approach to cladding defect claims following Grenfell.

TCC150 Series: Episode 2 - MT Højgaard A/S v E.ON Climate & Renewables UK Robin Rigg East Limited and another [2017]

This is the second in a series of podcasts coming this year, all recorded to celebrate 150 years of the Technology and Construction Court (TCC). In each episode, Keating barristers will chose one leading case from the TCC and review how it has faired over the years, including discussion of subsequent cases that have focused on it.

In this episode Calum Lamont KC and Paul Buckingham KC discuss the scope of ‘fitness for purpose’ obligations in construction contracts, starting with arguably the most important case on this matter in recent times, MT Højgaard A/S v E.ON Climate & Renewables UK Robin Rigg East Limited and another [2017]. This dispute concerned defects in the Robin Rigg wind farm in the Solway Firth, one of the first offshore wind farms to be developed around the UK, and proceeded from the TCC all the way up to the Supreme Court.  Calum and Paul discuss how the decision has impacted upon the approach of the TCC in subsequent cases and the apparent willingness of the courts to hold the parties to their contractual obligations, even where those obligations are absolute in nature without negligence or lack of skill and care on the part of the contractor.

TCC150 Series: Episode 1 - RTS Flexible Systems Ltd v Molkerei Alois Muller GmbH & Co KG [2010]

This is the first in a series of podcasts coming this year, all recorded to celebrate 150 years of the Technology and Construction Court (TCC). In each episode, Keating barristers will chose one leading case from the TCC and review how it has faired over the years, including discussion of subsequent cases that have focused on it.

In this episode, Head of Chambers, Alexander Nissen KC, is joined by Jennie Wild and Emma Healiss to discuss the landmark judgment in RTS Flexible Systems Ltd v Molkerei Alois Muller GmbH & Co KG [2010]. This is a case about contract formation, which eventually went all the way up to the Supreme Court, with the Supreme Court commenting on the perils of starting work without agreeing the precise basis upon which the work is to be done.

*slight correction to note following this recording, the first instance decision in RTS Flexible Systems Ltd v Molkerei Alois Muller GmbH & Co KG was given by The Right Honourable Sir Christopher Clarke.

A Point of Planning Law in a Construction Dispute: Clin v Walter Lilly in the Court of Appeal

What constitutes ‘Demolition’ under S74 of the Planning (Listed Buildings and Conservation Areas) Act 1990? In this episode, Charlie Banner and John Steel discuss the Court of Appeal decision in Clin v Walter Lilly & Co. Ltd [2021] EWCA Civ 136 which addressed that very question. The podcast seeks to contextualise the decision of the Court in the history of the litigation, the relevant planning statutes and the applicable case law, namely the House of Lords decision in Shimizu [1997] 1 WLR 168. The discussion features an analysis of the Court of Appeal’s decision and the submissions of the Parties before the Court.