Construction Focus: The end of the age of collaborative working?

John Starr examines collaborative working in the context of the Latham report, and the realities of the construction industry ‘Some academic commentators are quick to extol the virtues of altruistic behaviour, even where this involves the voluntary compromise of commercial rights, whereas to others this approach appears foolish, even dangerous.’Collaborative working (sometimes referred to as …
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Planning Update: Planning obligations –down but not out

Aaron Richardson reviews recent government attempts to limit the use of planning obligations ‘Around 80% of local planning authorities (LPAs) do not have community infrastructure levy (CIL) charging schedules in place. LPAs are under no obligation to adopt a CIL charging schedule and some have confirmed that they do not intend to do so.’ For …
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Compulsory Purchase: Where are we now?

Frank Orr looks at planning compulsory purchase orders in light of some of the findings of a Bond Dickinson report published in March, and comments upon the procedural reforms suggested in the recent government consultation paper ‘It will be no surprise to practitioners that unopposed compulsory purchase orders (CPOs) take less time to be determined …
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Injunctions And Rights Of Light: A more balanced approach

Stephen Bickford-Smith and Keith Shaw discuss a recent case which has brought a fairer approach to when injunctions will be granted ‘From now on, while the default position remains that an injunction should be granted, courts must apply the law more flexibly, taking into account all the circumstances.’ Mr Heaney owned the former Yorkshire Penny …
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Development Agreements: When is a variation caught by procurement law?

Hannah Kramer reports on a case that has highlighted the risk of a new public procurement exercise having to be carried out in the event of a ‘material’ variation to an agreement ‘The Silver Hill decision does not in itself establish any new principles, but reaffirms existing case law that public works contracts and concession …
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Leases: Joint liability and lease guarantors

Mark Pawlowski explores the rules governing liability of joint tenants and their guarantors for rent under the lease ‘A guarantor for the obligations of the original tenant is invariably a party to the lease. In other words, the guarantor’s covenant is made with the landlord and the latter can sue on the direct covenant between …
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The Infrastructure Act: A green light for unconventional oil and gas?

Emily Tetley-Jones investigates the Infrastructure Act, how it proposes to facilitate oil and gas exploration and production projects, and the difficulties with the compensation scheme for those affected by such projects ‘Unless one company is prepared to take a risk and trailblaze without further regulations being made, the industry (especially in light of the anticipated …
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