The UK Supreme Court’s (Court) decision in URS Corporation Ltd v. BDW Trading Ltd [2025] UKSC 21 resolves key questions around the recoverability of remediation costs where the developer no longer owns the property and has no...more
In the fourth and final post on our series on Disputes 101 we look at boilerplate provisions on: entire agreements, non-reliance, oral variation (aka oral modification) and waiver. Entire agreement and non-reliance - Entire...more
On 9 July 2024, the Supreme Court unanimously held that collateral warranties deriving from or reflective of the primary building contract, and merely promising continued construction, are not generally considered agreements...more
An article considering the Supreme Court’s decision in Abbey Healthcare, which decided that a typically worded collateral warranty is not a construction contract for the purposes of the Housing Grants, Construction and...more
In the UK Supreme Court's judgment in RTI Ltd v MUR Shipping BV [2024] UKSC 18, which was handed down last week, it considered what obligations the words “reasonable endeavours” placed on a party, in the context of a force...more
In an important recent decision, the U.K. Supreme Court provided further guidance on how to determine the law that applies to an international arbitration agreement. In its unanimous decision in Kabab-Ji SAL v Kout Food...more
The UK Supreme Court has recently confirmed an important principle regarding the application of liquidated damages clauses. In Triple Point Technology, Inc v PTT Public Company Ltd, the Supreme Court confirmed that, as a...more
FOREWORD - On behalf of the new and expanding Goodwin London litigation team I am delighted to welcome you to our first ever ‘Litigation Insights’: a series of quarterly updates on important and interesting developments...more
Commercial parties often use the word “shall” to impose a contractual obligation. This Court of Appeal decision is an illustration of how the surrounding circumstances, including prior dealings, can mean that “shall” is...more
In Wood v Capita Insurance Services Ltd [2017] UKSC 24, the Supreme Court again examined the principles of contractual interpretation. In Arnold v Britton the Supreme Court had cautioned against commercial common sense...more
The Supreme Court ruled that the “illegality defence” would not prevent restitution of money which had been paid as part of an attempted crime which was never carried out. The majority in Patel v Mirza [2016] UKSC 42,...more
The English High Court has once again had to visit the principles for interpretation of contracts under English law, in Canary Wharf v Deutsche Trustee Company Limited and others. The particular issue in dispute concerned...more
The UK Supreme Court has now handed down its greatly anticipated judgment in the case of Marks and Spencer plc v BNP Paribas Securities Services Trust Company (Jersey) Limited. The Court confirmed that where a break clause...more