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Forthcoming Meetings
All members are welcome to attend the following technical meetings, organised for you by your local branch. Attendance is free to all grades of members and the atmosphere is informal. We especially welcome our newer members, who can meet and share experiences with other members of all grades.
Existing and aspiring Chartered Arbitrators and members of Panels are reminded that they are required to gain at least 60 CPD points in each three-year period. Our technical meetings each count as 1.5 CPD points. So whether you are looking to add to your CPD, are interested in the topics, or just want to do some networking, why not come along?
The meetings normally start at 6.30pm and we provide an optional hot buffet supper for those who wish to stay and socialise after the meetings (or who are hungry). The charge for this is a very reasonable £15.00 per head.
Tuesday 16th January 2007 - Reigate Manor Hotel, Reigate
ADJUDICATION AND THE CONSTRUCTION ACT REVIEW
MARION RICH (BCSA) and ROD PETTIGREW (HVCA) Adjudication under the Construction Act has been under review by the Government and the DTI's consultation exercise was due to result in draft proposals and eventually legislation. The focus of the review was originally on improving the payment provisions (the impetus for bringing in adjudication), but this has proved much more problematic than addressing changes to adjudication procedures. At the time of going to press (August), announcements were expected.
Marion Rich (Director of Contractual and Legal Affairs for the British Constructional Steelwork Association) and Rod Pettigrew (Legal Adviser to the Heating and Ventilating Contractors' Association) were both members of the Construction Act Review Payment Working Group.
Tuesday 13th February 2007 - Reigate Manor Hotel, Reigate
THE MINEFIELD OF DETERMINING COSTS
DEPUTY COSTS JUDGE JENNIFER JAMES
Determining party costs is undoubtedly a complicated area, full of pitfalls and complexities that can cause significant headaches for even the most experienced arbitrator or adjudicator, and for those who have to make submissions upon them. How do you begin to determine the event they should follow, and, having established the event, how do you determine what is reasonable or recoverable?
Since qualifying as a solicitor, Jennifer James' experience has been exclusively in the field of legal costs. She has undertaken Claimant and Defendant work, ranging from small cases in County Courts up and down the country to cases in the High Court, Court of Appeal, Privy Council and House of Lords. Jennifer was made an Honorary Member of the ABA (Young Lawyers' Division) in 2001, for services to the International
Bar and was appointed a Deputy Costs Judge and Deputy District Judge in 2002. Since then she has undertaken regular sittings, hearing a variety of cases and handing down Judgements thereon. She is the youngest-ever person to be appointed a Deputy Costs Judge, and only the second woman in the long history of the Supreme Court Costs Office. Jennifer also acts as a consultant to Kain Knight, a firm of law costs specialists, and writes regular columns for the New Law Journal.
Jennifer will share with us the benefit of her immense experience in the area of costs. This talk is a must for anyone who finds they have to deal with them.
Tuesday 13th March 2007 - Reigate Manor Hotel, Reigate
CIArb SOUTH EAST BRANCH ANNUAL GENERAL MEETING
Followed by
"BUT I'M A PROFESSIONAL, NOT A WASHING MACHINE!" - HUGH WRIGHT, LAW SOCIETY CONSUMER COMPLAINTS SERVICE
Membership of professional bodies does not come easily; such status recognises a member's years of learning, training and experience and we would like to believe that we maintain the highest standards at all times. So when things go wrong and clients complain, it can sometimes be difficult to relate to what the problem is and find an effective solution. As clients become more demanding in the consumer marketplace, so their requirements and expectations of professional services evolve. The challenge for professionals is how to adapt to meet those expectations without compromising the integrity of their position.
Hugh Wright's experience of working with the Consumer Complaints Service of The Law Society (formerly the Office for the Supervision of Solicitors) has given him an insight into the difficulties professionals can face in dealing with what are essentially consumer issues. He has helped manage the OSS's change from a struggling, process-heavy organisation to a massively improved, and still improving, consumer-focused regulator serving both the consumer and the legal profession effectively and even-handedly.
In this informative talk, Hugh will outline how the CCS works to resolve complaints about solicitors effectively and some of the tools it uses; show how professionals can adopt a 'service mindset' to better appreciate their clients' needs as consumers; give some pointers on how to deal with difficult and emotional people and their needs; as well as giving some suggestions on what to do when things go wrong and clients complain about you.
This talk will be of interest to professionals of all backgrounds and qualifications, dealing as it does with issues that are pertinent to almost every field - from solicitors to washing machines!
PLEASE NOTE that the Annual General Meeting will commence at 6.15pm so that the talk can start promptly at 6.30pm.
Tuesday 17th April 2007 - Reigate Manor Hotel, Reigate
WHAT TO DO WITH AN EXPERT - TONY ENSOM
Most of us come across experts on a regular basis, either in front of the tribunal or providing their opinion in support of, or on the other side to, a client we are representing. Many of us act as experts ourselves.
Tony Ensom is a Chartered Building Surveyor and Chartered Arbitrator, and regularly acts as arbitrator, adjudicator and independent expert. He is also Chairman of Arbrix Construction Group and a member of the Society of Construction Arbitrators. Tony frequently acts as an expert witness, and of course has experts in front of him when arbitrating or adjudicating himself.
Tony will look at the role of experts in arbitration, adjudication and litigation, and will consider how experts can and should be used. How do you get the best out of an expert when they're in front of you, and what should you look for when considering their opinion? How should you instruct your expert when appointing one to give an opinion for your client? And if you're the expert, what should you be aware of in all of these situations?
Tuesday 8th May 2007 - Rose & Crown Hotel, 125 High Street, Tonbridge TN9 1DD
LEGAL UPDATE
VINCENT MORAN - KEATING CHAMBERS
Bearing in mind the requirement for all those involved with dispute resolution to keep abreast of current legal developments and case law, we are delighted that Vincent Moran of Keating Chambers has agreed to provide us with an invaluable update of current news at our May meeting.
Vincent was called to the Bar in 1991 and has practised from Keating Chambers since 2001. His practice covers a wide range of advisory work, drafting and advocacy related to construction disputes (including bonds, guarantees and sureties) and professional negligence matters. He has been involved in a fascinating array of disputes, including an arbitration in Hong Kong arising out of the construction of the new airport, a large domestic arbitration acting on behalf of a contractor in a dispute arising out of the construction of ship, and a TCC claim acting on behalf of a bondsman seeking to resist payment under a performance bond. He has appeared in the High Court, Court of Appeal and House of Lords in professional negligence actions related to construction professionals. Keating Chambers is renowned as one of the leading specialist Chambers in construction and engineering law, and has recently been honoured with three awards at the Chambers and Partners Bar Awards, including the prestigious "Construction Set of Year".
Tuesday 12th June 2007 - Reigate Manor Hotel, Reigate
DISPUTE BOARDS
PETER HJ CHAPMAN
Following a number of requests from members for an update on the subject of Dispute Boards, we are delighted that Peter Chapman has agreed to once again give us the benefit of his unparalleled knowledge and experience in this area at our last meeting before the Summer break.
Peter last gave a talk to the Branch on this subject in 2001, and he will now bring us up to date with recent developments. Many international development banks now insist on or support DBs for the projects they are involved in, and DBs are also popular with FIDIC, the ICC and the ICE. DB's now operate in numerous countries and have been demonstrably successful as a means of avoiding and resolving commercial disputes. Peter will explain how they have achieved this success, and how they may develop and expand in the future.
Peter will already be well known to many Branch members, and is widely recognised as a leading authority on Dispute Boards. Peter is also a Chartered Arbitrator, Chartered Civil Engineer and Barrister, and has been associated with the construction and engineering industries worldwide for over 35 years. He has undertaken more that 250 dispute references as either Arbitrator, Adjudicator or Conciliator/Mediator. He founded the Adjudication Society in 2000 and is currently the Society's Honorary President. Peter also chairs the FIDIC Assessment Panel for Adjudicators. He is a past president of the Dispute Resolution Board Foundation (DRBF) and received the 2006 DRBF Award for Excellence for his work on Dispute Boards.