Each situation would have to be looked at individually to establish whether it falls under the 1996 Act.1If the agreement qualifies as a construction contract under the 1996 Act, each party to it has the right to adjudicate. Our experience as one of the UK’s leading construction practices means that our lawyers are extremely well placed to guide you through all stages of the adjudication process. UK Cases. In my articles for Building magazine, I refer to cases concerning adjudication as case number X in my series.Some have asked for further details or a copy of that list, so here it is. The distinction is not always particularly easy to draw.Once an agreement has been reviewed and identified as being caught by the 1996 Act, there are several other requirements to consider. There are many examples of a party not responding to a notice until it is too late.Because of the truncated nature of the process, there is often an intense period during which there can be a serious drain on management time, with personnel having to be taken off the job to assist with the prosecution or defence of an adjudication.

There is no appeal and, even if the decision is wrong, it can still be enforced.2 If there has been a breach of natural justice in the adjudication process or the adjudicator has acted outside their jurisdiction, the court may stop the decision from being enforced.

This is likely to mean that an increasing number of arrangements will be caught, with the probable consequence that more disputes will be referred to adjudication. In these circumstances, you could consider adapting the contract to remove the adjudication provisions altogether.Even if the contract is caught, as long as it contains what the 1996 Act says it should, the adjudication procedure can be tailored to fit, perhaps by naming the adjudicator in advance or restricting the length of submissions.There is a compelling need to react very swiftly when a notice of adjudication is received and, as well as getting legal assistance, insurers may also need to be notified. Anyone not involved in what might be regarded as the mainstream of the construction industry (whether as a building contractor or someone who regularly employs one) would be forgiven for thinking that a dispute resolution procedure introduced to rid the industry of some of its historical problems is of no relevance to their business.So it may come as a surprise to the wider business world to find out that it is still possible to be caught by the Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 (the 1996 Act), which came into force on 1 May 1998. An adjudicator is selected and appointed. For example, although this would change in the 2009 Act, s107(1) of the 1996 Act states that the contract has to be ‘in writing’. These amendments are contained in Medical Device Directive 2007/47/EC (the 2007 Directive), which was published in the Official Journal of the EU on the 21 … The Coalition Agreement made between the Liberal Democrats and Conservatives, published on 20 May 2010, together with the Queen’s Speech delivered on 25 May 2010, contained several proposals for tax reform, which in the government’s view are aimed at creating a fairer and simpler taxation system. At the same time, immigration continues to remain at the front of huge political debates, in particular the impact of migration … The laws governing foreign ownership of companies in Middle Eastern countries are complex. Usually, a response from the referring party and a decision will follow within the 28-day period.Many adjudicators decide to deal with the dispute on paper, restricting what they consider to written submissions and, possibly, witness statements.