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RJC
Consultants Newsletter No.3 May 2004 |
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Since our last Newsletter in November
many new and exciting developments have been happening within RJC, both
in terms of expansion and infrastructure.
With our already established base in the South West and now an enhanced presence in the Thames Valley and Home Counties region, due to the opening of our Slough office last May, RJC has managed to attract so much more work that we are actively looking to recruit a further five Senior Consultants with the relevant expertise and experience to complement our existing staff. In January we were involved in no less than five Adjudications! We welcome aboard Samantha Wescott, who has joined our Bristol team as an Office Assistant and is proving to be an invaluable extra pair of hands. February has seen RJC go full steam ahead on the IT front. We have gone ‘Broadband’ and in the very near future we are hoping to fully network the Bristol and Slough offices.
Marketing Helen Burbridge represented RJC at the Chamber of Commerce prestigious Annual Dinner at the Marriott Hotel in Bristol, in the presence of His Royal Highness the Duke of York.
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Dispute Avoidance/Management Try as we may it is impossible to avoid disputes in the construction industry. RJC work with our clients to avoid claims becoming a problem and/or to nip them in the bud. Where avoidance is not possible we are able to bring our considerable experience to bear in managing their resolution. Where we are brought in to the process early enough, we are able to achieve real savings in terms of cost and improve the outcome for our clients. Enlightened clients bring us on board at the outset to discuss and advise or implement sensible procedures and strategies to avoid and/or manage disputes. Adjudication has become the major forum for dispute resolution in the construction industry. The UK’s ‘Construction Act’ legislation is being imported into many other countries around the world. After more than five year’s of hands-on practice in this field RJC is well placed to not only advise their clients, but to comment on its usage. Adjudication offers a process, backed by law, which provides a degree of certainty at least in ensuring that both parties positively engage, a decision is reached quickly (normally within 28 days) and that the decision or award will be upheld. Because of these relative ‘certainties’ the participants put up with the downside. The downside may include questionable decisions and being incurred in significant unrecoverable costs in the process. There is no doubt that Adjudication works and that it is here to stay and for many disputes it is the best way of obtaining a ‘satisfactory’ resolution. However, there are many disputes currently being adjudicated on that could and perhaps should be resolved by other methods. These alternatives include Mediation, Legal Proceedings or even (dare we suggest) Arbitration. Not (we hasten to add) the old fashioned, very lengthy and extremely expensive version of Arbitration practised in the bad old days (when it was the only option) but quite possibly the new-fangled 100-day Arbitration being promulgated under new CIMAR rules currently being drafted. We at RJC will ensure that our clients are kept abreast of all the alternatives and therefore enabled to make informed choices (where possible) as to the best way forward in this complex and developing area. Construction Skills Certification Scheme (CSCS) RJC staff are well underway
in achieving their goal in obtaining their CSCS certification.
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