Law

Burness Paull's Kathleen McAnea looks at the implications of the current shortage in construction materials and offers suggestions for companies who may be impacted. In March there was much industry chatter about the materials shortage in construction and the impact on housebuilders.

Andrew Tolmie and Stefanie Johnston outline the current legal landscape in Scotland regarding who pays the remedial works necessary to bring residential buildings into line with new fire safety standards. On 14th June 2017, a fire broke out in the 24-storey Grenfell Tower block in west London, causi

An owner of a property on the west coast of Scotland who claimed he was wrongly charged for ratings payments on the property has been unsuccessful in an appeal against the dismissal of a judicial review petition raised challenging the decision of the local authority’s ratings board.

Dispute resolution specialist Ian Timlin outlines nine things to be considered if faced with contractor insolvency. As a result of the pandemic, we have seen, and advised on, numerous instances where main contractors have downed tools or closed sites. In some cases, this has been a tempora

Heat networks have not been widely adopted in the UK due to a lack of regulation and resulting lack of consumer confidence. They also require significant upfront capital costs. As Scotland is the first nation within the UK to bring out legislation in this area, Sarah-Jane McArthur and Sara

An asbestos removal contractor has been fined after a worker was fatally injured and another worker seriously injured in a gas explosion in Wishaw. Hamilton Sheriff Court heard how on 5 October 2017, workers were removing a boiler and pipework, and overspraying walls to remove asbestos residue, at t

As the government continues to push the construction industry to move more of the building process off-site and into factories, Roddy Cormack, construction specialist at law firm Wright, Johnston & Mackenzie LLP, explores a conundrum which must be solved if the industry is to thrive in this area

The Competition and Markets Authority (CMA) has published a case study into the lessons learned from its investigation into two of the UK’s largest suppliers of rolled lead, who broke competition law by taking part in a business cartel.

A landlord of commercial premises in Aberdeenshire whose former tenant refused to pay for the cost of work to the property at the end of their tenancy has successfully obtained a decree for payment from the Outer House of the Court of Session.

Following the launch of a Police Scotland campaign aimed at tackling modern slavery concerns within the construction sector, Ramsay Hall outlines what modern slavery actually involves and what can be done when there's concern about its presence in the supply chain. Exploitation of people c

Miller Samuel Hill Brown has welcomed a decision issued by Lady Wolffe in the Outer House of the Court of Session this week, regarding the enforcement of post-termination non-compete restrictions in a contract of employment. Representing the pursuer, construction recruitment firm Apex Resources

As it continues to grow its track record of contributions to Scotland’s renewables mission, the offshore wind sector is currently making all the right headlines, writes Kelly Hardman. Amid the positive news, however, anyone with knowledge of sustainable business success will tell you it p

Construction firms battling back from the impact of Covid-19 could be among the winners from a new UK Government support scheme, according to a finance expert. Lawyer Gavin Buchan, a partner at Scottish legal firm Lindsays who leads its banking and finance team, also expects hospitality businesses t

Digby Brown has pledged to work with 12 other law firms to support a new campaign which aims to raise awareness of the dangers of asbestos and the cancer called mesothelioma, which is caused by exposure to asbestos. The UK has the world’s highest incidence of mesothelioma with around 2,700 peo

The post-lockdown house-move boom has seen Scottish law firm and estate agent Lindsays defy disruption to record a rise in the number of homes sold in the past 12 months. Sales by its residential property division rose by 4.26% in the last financial year, with homes valued at a total of £177.3