Legal Focus
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FeaturesThe coronavirus crisis: What does it all mean?
The implications of covid-19 for construction, housing and legal
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FeaturesBrexit and construction law: Changing times
One year on from the EU referendum, nobody knows how a post-Brexit world will look
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FeaturesInterview: Richard Saxon
Richard Saxon, chair of the Joint Contracts Tribunal, speaks to 黑洞社区 legal columnist Francis Ho about new kinds of contracts, the competition, and where he thinks the industry is heading
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FeaturesCrossing the line
With the Calais crisis still a hot media topic, the government is on the warpath against construction companies employing illegal workers. But is the sector doing enough to make sure it doesn鈥檛 get caught out?
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FeaturesProcurement on trial
Construction firms are increasingly emboldened to take the government to court over its procurement decisions, but who鈥檚 to blame?
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FeaturesMuseum of Liverpool: Nightmare at the museum
The 拢72m Museum of Liverpool may have opened in 2011, but problems with the design and build mean parts of the iconic building are still inaccessible to the public. Last week鈥檚 拢1.13m court judgment highlights the dangers for small consultants on big projects
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FeaturesInsurance special report: BIM
The rise of collaboration software has created a lot of questions for insurers - not least how to divide up and assign blame if anything goes wrong
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FeaturesCostly legal disputes: Everyone's a loser
The amount spent on legal disputes has jumped by a third in the UK over the past year. Why are construction firms still so keen to spend on litigation?
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FeaturesSparks fly: The row over electricians' wage agreements
The decision of seven major M&E contractors to break away from the 40-year-old JIB wage agreement was prompted by an 鈥榰rgent need to modernise鈥� but has already led to angry clashes between workers and police. 黑洞社区 reports on a row that threatens to become the sector鈥檚 biggest industrial relations dispute ...
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FeaturesHackney Empire vs Aviva Insurance: The Empire strikes back
This is the tale of a theatre project, backed by Lord Sugar, that landed its client with a 拢3.2m headache. Now eight years on there鈥檚 a legal battle over a bond between the insurer and the theatre owner
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FeaturesLegal tax avoidance: No place to hide
Legal tax avoidance is practised widely, but with mounting pressure from protest groups and the chancellor, is it still worth it? Here we weigh the financial benefits against the reputational risk
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FeaturesUnderbidding: Warning! Highly risky manoeuvre
Desperate times call for desperate measures, and in some cases result in suicidal tendencies. As underbidding spirals further out of control, we look at how widespread the practice has become and what 鈥� if anything 鈥� can be done about it.
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FeaturesDifficult jurisdictions: Kazakhstan
Continuing our series on difficult jurisdictions, Chris Hill explains how doing business in booming Kazakhstan has become much easier. That鈥檚 not to say it鈥檚 a walkover
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FeaturesHow paternity rights and abolition of retirement age will hit construction
The Coalition government鈥檚 new paternity rights will cause major headache for employers in the male-dominated building industry
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FeaturesHas the financial crisis killed the construction dispute?
Conventional wisdom says that this downturn will spark an explosion in legal battles as cash-strapped firms pursue the last penny from their partners. So why do disputes seem to be on the wane? 黑洞社区 and law firm Addleshaw Goddard gather a panel of experts to thrash it out
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FeaturesBribery Act: Where the buck stops 鈥�
You probably wouldn鈥檛 dream of handing over a wad of $100 notes to clinch a deal abroad. But what if a third party acting on your behalf did just that, without you knowing? Under the new Bribery Act you鈥檒l now face 10 years in prison
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FeaturesMock court cases for construction: Safety on trial
The HSE鈥檚 latest initiative to bring the safety message to the masses is to hold mock court cases for construction professionals to observe. But how effective is it likely to be? Andrew Hankinson plays court reporter
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FeaturesRTS Flexible Systems Ltd vs Molkeroi Alois M眉ller Gmbh & Co KG (UK Production)
If the parties behave as if a contract exists, then one may legally exist whether or not it has actually been signed
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FeaturesNew Saudi property rules could tempt UK firms
Regulations follow Dubai鈥檚 recent changes, which is good news for those entering the market
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FeaturesThe peasant's revolt this ain't: Chelsea vs the barracks
This gang of Chelsea residents is on the cusp of pulling off a very English coup. Emily Wright met their ringleaders