Another round on concurrent delay Saga Cruises BDF Limited v Fincantieri SPA [2016] EWHC 1875 (Comm) is yet another decision concerning the question of concurrent delay. In this case, the Court found in favour of the claimant noting: the importance in concurrency arguments of distinguishing between a delay which, had the contractor not been delayed would have caused delay, but because of an existing delay made no difference and those where further delay is actually caused by the event relied on. Following this, the Court did not grant the defendant an extension of time for the period where the claimant also caused delays. For the defendant to benefit from the Malmaison principle, it needed to prove that the claimant’s delay events in fact caused delay. Unfortunately, this decision does not resolve the uncertainty in relation to concurrent delay. Nevertheless, it does show an inclination towards a more restrictive approach to the assessment of concurrent delay. The judgment of Ms Sara Cockerill QC (sitting as a Deputy High Court Judge) can be found here. Construction reaching record levels According to the Building and Housing Minister Dr Nick Smith, New Zealand is into its fifth consecutive year of strong growth in construction, reaching an average annual growth of 20 per cent. This equals 30,000 homes consented per year – the fastest rate in the local industry in the last ten years. “Residential construction activity has reached $12.5 billion, an all-time high, and the number of homes consented has topped 30,000. This is the longest and strongest residential construction boom in New Zealand history, with five straight years of growth averaging over 20 per cent per annum. This is as fast as you can practically grow a sector as large and as complex as construction without compromising quality,” Dr Nick Smith says.
Payment and Adjudication over the holiday period – a cautionary reminder Just a cautionary reminder that notwithstanding the fact that many contractors like to take extended breaks over the summer holiday period, the Construction Contracts Act 2002 only provides a short period between the 24th of December and the 5th January in the following year that does not count as ‘working days’ for the purpose of responding to payment claims, suspension notices, and participating as a party in an adjudication. If you may be a recipient of a payment claim, or you are a party to a dispute that is, or might be the subject of an adjudication, you should take steps to ensure that someone regularly checks emails and any physical address where such related documents may be served, and that someone has the ability and the authority to deal with such matters.