2006 – Construction Law

K&LNG’s Arbitration World, Summer 2006

Jul 01 2006

By Ian Meredith, Linda A. Kent, Peter R. Morton, Kelly D. Talcott, Matthew E. Smith, Clare Tanner, Sarah A. Munro.

Arbitration World, a publication of Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham, highlights the significant developments and issues in international arbitration that matter to in-house counsel and company executives with responsibility for dispute resolution.

Welcome to the second edition of “Arbitration World,” a publication from Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP’s Arbitration Group. “Arbitration World” aims to highlight significant developments and issues in international arbitration that matter to in-house counsel and company executives with responsibility for dispute resolution.

In this significantly expanded edition:

We look back at our International Arbitration Seminar held at Claridge’s, London in March this year and look forward to our forthcoming International Arbitration Webinar programme in the Autumn;
We examine some practical considerations in relation to arbitration clauses in insurance contracts, consider the issue of whether an arbitrator has authority to grant rescission of the contract as a remedy in arbitration and offer some thoughts on ways to deal with the tricky area of arbitration of multiparty disputes with particular reference to the construction sector;

Form to Formation

May 01 2006

This article by Preston Gates & Ellis Anchorage partner Paul L. Davis appears in the May 2006 edition of Alaska Business Monthly. It discusses how the search for front-end efficiencies can derail construction project agreements:

In all but the smallest construction projects, written project agreements are a necessity and, depending on the complexity of the project and number of parties involved, can evolve from a few pages to many. When anticipating construction projects, parties often spend more time visualizing the project itself, overlooking the time or money necessary to fully develop a new project agreement. The result is the frequent use of standard form agreements that are modified, many times by the parties themselves, to fit the circumstances of the new project’s specifications. While this may create efficiencies, project owners may find themselves more disadvantaged by the use of standard forms than contractors and designers.

View the full article here.

The “Greening” of New York

Jan 17 2006

By Michael R. Gordon, Ruvym D. Gilman, Kathryn Plunkett and contribution by John R. Nolon, professor at the Pace University School of Law and counsel to its Land Use Law Center.

This article appeared in the New York Law Journal on January 17, 2006.

Lawyers practicing in the design and construction fields cannot ignore emerging trends, and “green construction”— the use of environmentally conscious design, construction, and operation methods to create sustainable commercial and residential buildings—is an emerging trend. For New York construction lawyers, it is an important trend because New York is leading the nation in green construction. The number of green buildings and green construction projects underway in New York is steadily increasing. Completed green buildings in New York City include the Solaire residential buildings in Battery Park City and Four Times Square. Still to be completed are the Hearst Magazine Building and the Bank of America Tower near Bryant Park, to name a few.

Why the focus? There are a number of reasons, including a concern for energy efficiency and a growing environmental consciousness, but the most notable cause is no doubt the adoption of mandatory green construction laws and guidelines and the creation of financial incentives on municipal, state and federal levels. . . .

Read the full article here.

K&LNG’s Arbitration World (U.S. Version), Winter 2005/2006

Jan 01 2006

By Thomas E. Birsic, Ian Meredith, Linda A. Kent, Peter R. Morton, Kelly D. Talcott, Matthew E. Smith and Clare Tanner.

Arbitration World highlights the significant developments and issues in international arbitration that matter to in-house counsel and company executives with responsibility for dispute resolution.

Welcome to the first edition of “Arbitration World,” a publication from Kirkpatrick & Lockhart Nicholson Graham LLP’s Arbitration Group. “Arbitration World” aims to highlight significant developments and issues in international arbitration that matter to in-house counsel and company executives with responsibility for dispute resolution.

In this issue we will be covering some recent decisions of the European Court of Justice which serve to highlight the benefits of agreements to arbitrate, and some English case law developments including a House of Lords decision re-affirming the English court’s noninterventionist approach to arbitration.

We look at the growing importance of Bilateral Investment Treaties (BITs) and how they might be used not only in claims by investors against governments of developing nations, but also in claims against Western States.

Archive:2006