On the 12th October 2023, at the Heart of England conference centre in London, expert construction solicitors Sam Bawden and Lawrence Pearce presented to approximately 175 delegates at the Scaffolding Conference 2023 (an annual event run by The Scaffolding Association).
The Scaffolding Conference was well attended by those in the scaffolding and access sector across a variety of roles, with the theme of the 2023 conference being ‘Gaining the Advantage’. The aim of the conference for 2023 was to join together those in the scaffolding and access sectors to empower them to be their best.
Sam and Lawrence presented as thought leaders in Construction Law and as experts in the legal nuances of the scaffolding and access industry. Their session followed keynote speeches on maximising the advantage through CITB, neurodiversity in construction and compliance and navigating your operator licence obligations.
Sam and Lawrence’s talk provided insight into how scaffolding contractors can ‘gain the advantage’ within an industry whereby the larger main contractors/developers hold the dominance and bargaining power when it comes to contractual provisions.
Initially, Lawrence covered the importance of having T&Cs even if they are the fall-back position. He talked of how often the clients he works with don’t get sent a contract prior to commencement and therefore, your terms may well apply. He then went on to discuss conflicts between contractual terms and tender documents and what happens next.
Following Lawrence, Sam went through the key terminology in relation to payment in construction, for example, not thinking the ‘due date’ is when the money is paid to you! As well as this, Sam focused on payment schedules, looking at what if payment schedules run out as the works are delayed.
Finally, Lawrence closed off Holmes & Hills’ session by covering what to do if it does go wrong and highlighted the importance of early advice – prevention is better than cure.
Holmes & Hills Construction Division is the national legal partner for The Scaffolding Association (which runs the Scaffolding Conference). Throughout the partnership, Holmes & Hills Construction Division has and will share knowledge with members of the Scaffolding Association through sessions and webinars. Keep an eye on the Holmes & Hills events page for upcoming sessions.
Moreover, if you have any further questions about the topics discussed in the Holmes & Hills session at the Scaffolding Conference, please feel free to contact Holmes & Hills Solicitors’ Construction Division who will be happy to discuss any issues you may have in an informal, no-obligation conversation.
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