Insights on payment, valuation and expert evidence.
Short, practical articles for solicitors, contractors and homeowners on the questions that recur in construction and property disputes. Written by Chris Baker MRICS.
What a home survey should have found: how a surveyor negligence claim is assessed
How an expert assesses whether a Level 1, 2 or 3 Home Survey met the RICS Home Survey Standard, what it should have identified, and how the loss is measured.
Read articleHow a Quantity Surveyor tests an alleged overpayment
An employer believes it has paid more than the works were worth. The steps an independent quantity surveyor takes to find out, from reconstructing the account to presenting a bridge the tribunal can follow.
Read articlePay less notices: what homeowners and small contractors need to know
How payment notices and pay less notices work under the Construction Act, the timings that catch people out, and what a quantity surveyor looks for when a notice dispute arises.
Read articleWhen to ask for a Single Joint Expert in a residential building dispute
How Single Joint Experts work under CPR 35.7, when the court is likely to direct one, what instructing solicitors should put in the joint letter, and how to get value from the report.
Read articleTrue value adjudication after a smash and grab: what the paying party can and cannot do
After S&T v Grove, a payer who loses a notified-sum adjudication must pay first and argue value second. What a true value adjudication involves and how the quantum evidence is built.
Read articleDiscuss an instruction in confidence.
Early conversations are without obligation and treated as confidential. Conflicts are checked before any detail of the dispute is discussed.