Arbitration and Adjudication FAQ

Construction Dispute Services Introduction Adjudication Arbitration FAQ Contact Request

Frequently Asked Questions Adjudication. What is adjudication? Who can use adjudication? Who or what is an adjudicator? How does adjudication work? How long does adjudication take? How much does adjudication cost? Arbitration What is arbitration? Who can use arbitration? Who or what is an arbitrator? How does arbitration work? How long does arbitration take? How much does arbitration cost? Adjudication. What is Adjudication? Adjudication is the dispute mechanism within the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (The CCA). The parties in dispute use an independent adjudicator to issue a determination on their dispute, this determination is binding on the parties. The CCA became law in April 2003, and has three aims: · To enable regular payments between parties to a construction contract. · To provide a simple and quick dispute resolution procedure - Adjudication. · To provide remedies for the recovery of money due under a construction contract. The CCA applies to all construction work entered into following April 2003. It differentiates between commercial and residential, however both types of construction are subject to the provisions of the CCA. Back to top Who can use adjudication? It is important to realise that you cannot exclude to provisions of the CCA, therefore anyone who has entered into a construction contract can use adjudication to resolve their dispute. You may be the home owner, developer, contractor or subcontractor. If you are involved in the building or construction project then the CCA applies, and if you enter into a dispute you can use adjudication to resolve your dispute. Adjudication can be used to resolve any dispute under a construction contract, however it is only determinations for disputes involving money that are enforceable by the courts. To instigate the adjudication process you must issue a notice of adjudication, from which you have 5 working days to select an adjudicator. There are 3 ways to select an adjudicator; either by mutual agreement, by requesting a nominating body to select an adjudicator and then the parties agreeing, or by requesting a nominating authority to select an adjudicator. Statistics have proven that selection by mutual agreement is the prevalent method. Back to top Who or what is an Adjudicator? An Adjudicator is an independant 3rd party who issues a determination on a construction dispute within 20 - 30 working days of the dispute being presented before them. Anyone can call themselves an adjudicator, therefore it is wise to select someone who has under gone training, has experience in construction and is a member of a professional institute. This ensures that you have selected someone who is qualified to resolve your dispute and who is bound by a legal and professional set of ethics. Back to top How does adjudication work? The party instigating the adjudication and bringing a claim is called the claimant and the party defending the claim is the respondent. The parties agree for me to be the adjudicator. They then contact me and within 2 days I will confirm my availability to act, my appointment is confirmed on agreement of my terms. From appointment the claimant has 5 working days to make their submission on the dispute. This submission should be include all the relevant documentation required to present their side of the argument. The respondent then has 5 working days to submit there defence, again their submission needs to include all relevant information to defend the dispute. Under adjudication there is no mechanism for counter claims, they must be dealt with under a separate dispute. After the 5 working day period from receipt of the claimant submission I then have 20 working days to issue my determination. If the dispute is financial then my determination is legally binding and enforceable by the courts. If you require further information then I can issue a copy of the AMINZ Adjudication protocol for your information. Back to top How long does adjudication take? Adjudication is a quick process; If you appoint me as your adjudicator, you can have a determination within 30 working days. Back to top How much does adjudication cost? All dispute processes cost money, adjudication is one of the quickest procedures available and compared to litigation is very cost effective. The cost of resolving your dispute is dependent on how complicated it is, and the amount of time required examining the information prior to issuing my determination. The parties are responsible for their own costs, and the cost of the adjudicator is either split equally or as determined by the adjudicator between the parties. You only pay for the time spent dealing with your dispute, for confirmation of my hourly rate and terms of engagement please contact me. I may request a security or deposit as part of my engagement, if at the end of the process there is a surplus from this dispute then this will be refunded. Back to top Arbitration. What is arbitration? Arbitration is one of the oldest forms of dispute resolution, and is used throughout the world to settle all types of disputes. The arbitration process is governed by The Arbitration Act 1996. Arbitration is a resolution process where an independent 3rd party - the Arbitrator - hears from both parties and then issues an award equivalent to that of a court decision. Arbitration is private, confidential, flexible, consensual and provides a final and binding decision. All parties will have an equal opportunity to present their case and the respondent can bring counter claims as well as defend the disputes against them. A hearing can be conducted in private with the process and outcome being confidential. During the hearing the parties can present evidence and call witnesses. The parties can represent themselves or seek the assistance of someone with experience in arbitration to assist them. Back to top Who can use arbitration? Anyone can use arbitration to resolve their dispute, provided they have an arbitration agreement. the agreement can be either verbal or written. For more information on Arbitration and the process involved contact me for more details. Back to top Who or what is an arbitrator? An Arbitrator is an independent 3rd party who issues an award which is equivalent to a decision by the courts. Anyone can call themselves an arbitrator, therefore it is wise to select someone who has under gone training, has experience in the issues involved in the dispute and is a member of a professional institute. This ensures that you have selected someone who is qualified to resolve your dispute and who is bound by a legal and professional set of ethics. Back to top How does arbitration work? One the parties have agreed to arbitrate and the claimant has issued an arbitration notice,, the next step is generally to select an arbitrator. This can be done a number of ways however the most common is by mutual agreement. Following selection and agreement of terms the arbitrator will hold a preliminary meeting to agree a timetable for the proceedings and to agree if a hearing is to be held. if there is not to be a hearing then the parties can submit all the relevant documentation to the arbitrator and await the award. If there is to be a hearing then the parties need to prepare, witnesses, evidence etc. The hearing is generally held in a neutral place and it is private and confidential. At the hearing the parties will present evidence and can call witnesses. After which based on the evidence presented the arbitrator will issue there award. Back to top How long does arbitration take? The duration of the preliminary stages, hearing and the time required to issue an award is entirely dependent on the dispute and the amount of evidence presented, however an arbitrator must ensure that the whole process including the issue of the award is carried out in a reasonable timeframe. Back to top How much does arbitration cost? All dispute processes cost money, the costs of the arbitrator and your own costs incurred in the arbitration process can either be allocated by the arbitrator in their award or by agreement between the parties. Generally arbitration is a significantly more cost effective procedure than litigation. You only pay for my time spent dealing with your dispute, for confirmation of my hourly rate and terms of engagement please contact me. I may request a security or deposit as part of my engagement, if at the end of the process there is a surplus from this dispute then this will be refunded. Back to top

Construction Dispute Services

Introduction Adjudication Arbitration FAQ Contact Request

Frequently Asked Questions

Adjudication.

What is adjudication?
Who can use adjudication?
Who or what is an adjudicator?
How does adjudication work?
How long does adjudication take?
How much does adjudication cost?

Arbitration

What is arbitration?
Who can use arbitration?
Who or what is an arbitrator?
How does arbitration work?
How long does arbitration take?
How much does arbitration cost?

Adjudication.

What is Adjudication?

Adjudication is the dispute mechanism within the Construction Contracts Act 2002 (The CCA). The parties in dispute use an independent adjudicator to issue a determination on their dispute, this determination is binding on the parties.

The CCA became law in April 2003, and has three aims:

· To enable regular payments between parties to a construction contract.

· To provide a simple and quick dispute resolution procedure - Adjudication.

· To provide remedies for the recovery of money due under a construction contract.

The CCA applies to all construction work entered into following April 2003. It differentiates between commercial and residential, however both types of construction are subject to the provisions of the CCA.

Back to top

Who can use adjudication?

It is important to realise that you cannot exclude to provisions of the CCA, therefore anyone who has entered into a construction contract can use adjudication to resolve their dispute.
You may be the home owner, developer, contractor or subcontractor.
If you are involved in the building or construction project then the CCA applies, and if you enter into a dispute you can use adjudication to resolve your dispute.
Adjudication can be used to resolve any dispute under a construction contract, however it is only determinations for disputes involving money that are enforceable by the courts.
To instigate the adjudication process you must issue a notice of adjudication, from which you have 5 working days to select an adjudicator. There are 3 ways to select an adjudicator; either by mutual agreement, by requesting a nominating body to select an adjudicator and then the parties agreeing, or by requesting a nominating authority to select an adjudicator. Statistics have proven that selection by mutual agreement is the prevalent method.

Back to top

Who or what is an Adjudicator?

An Adjudicator is an independant 3rd party who issues a determination on a construction dispute within 20 - 30 working days of the dispute being presented before them.
Anyone can call themselves an adjudicator, therefore it is wise to select someone who has under gone training, has experience in construction and is a member of a professional institute. This ensures that you have selected someone who is qualified to resolve your dispute and who is bound by a legal and professional set of ethics.
Back to top

How does adjudication work?

The party instigating the adjudication and bringing a claim is called the claimant and the party defending the claim is the respondent.
The parties agree for me to be the adjudicator. They then contact me and within 2 days I will confirm my availability to act, my appointment is confirmed on agreement of my terms.
From appointment the claimant has 5 working days to make their submission on the dispute. This submission should be include all the relevant documentation required to present their side of the argument. The respondent then has 5 working days to submit there defence, again their submission needs to include all relevant information to defend the dispute. Under adjudication there is no mechanism for counter claims, they must be dealt with under a separate dispute. After the 5 working day period from receipt of the claimant submission I then have 20 working days to issue my determination. If the dispute is financial then my determination is legally binding and enforceable by the courts.
If you require further information then I can issue a copy of the AMINZ Adjudication protocol for your information.
Back to top

How long does adjudication take?

Adjudication is a quick process; If you appoint me as your adjudicator, you can have a determination within 30 working days.
Back to top

How much does adjudication cost?

All dispute processes cost money, adjudication is one of the quickest procedures available and compared to litigation is very cost effective. The cost of resolving your dispute is dependent on how complicated it is, and the amount of time required examining the information prior to issuing my determination.
The parties are responsible for their own costs, and the cost of the adjudicator is either split equally or as determined by the adjudicator between the parties.
You only pay for the time spent dealing with your dispute, for confirmation of my hourly rate and terms of engagement please contact me. I may request a security or deposit as part of my engagement, if at the end of the process there is a surplus from this dispute then this will be refunded.
Back to top

Arbitration.

What is arbitration?

Arbitration is one of the oldest forms of dispute resolution, and is used throughout the world to settle all types of disputes. The arbitration process is governed by The Arbitration Act 1996.

Arbitration is a resolution process where an independent 3rd party - the Arbitrator - hears from both parties and then issues an award equivalent to that of a court decision.

Arbitration is private, confidential, flexible, consensual and provides a final and binding decision.
All parties will have an equal opportunity to present their case and the respondent can bring counter claims as well as defend the disputes against them.
A hearing can be conducted in private with the process and outcome being confidential. During the hearing the parties can present evidence and call witnesses.

The parties can represent themselves or seek the assistance of someone with experience in arbitration to assist them.
Back to top

Who can use arbitration?

Anyone can use arbitration to resolve their dispute, provided they have an arbitration agreement. the agreement can be either verbal or written.
For more information on Arbitration and the process involved contact me for more details.
Back to top

Who or what is an arbitrator?

An Arbitrator is an independent 3rd party who issues an award which is equivalent to a decision by the courts.
Anyone can call themselves an arbitrator, therefore it is wise to select someone who has under gone training, has experience in the issues involved in the dispute and is a member of a professional institute. This ensures that you have selected someone who is qualified to resolve your dispute and who is bound by a legal and professional set of ethics.
Back to top

How does arbitration work?

One the parties have agreed to arbitrate and the claimant has issued an arbitration notice,, the next step is generally to select an arbitrator. This can be done a number of ways however the most common is by mutual agreement.
Following selection and agreement of terms the arbitrator will hold a preliminary meeting to agree a timetable for the proceedings and to agree if a hearing is to be held. if there is not to be a hearing then the parties can submit all the relevant documentation to the arbitrator and await the award.
If there is to be a hearing then the parties need to prepare, witnesses, evidence etc. The hearing is generally held in a neutral place and it is private and confidential. At the hearing the parties will present evidence and can call witnesses. After which based on the evidence presented the arbitrator will issue there award.
Back to top

How long does arbitration take?

The duration of the preliminary stages, hearing and the time required to issue an award is entirely dependent on the dispute and the amount of evidence presented, however an arbitrator must ensure that the whole process including the issue of the award is carried out in a reasonable timeframe.
Back to top

How much does arbitration cost?

All dispute processes cost money, the costs of the arbitrator and your own costs incurred in the arbitration process can either be allocated by the arbitrator in their award or by agreement between the parties. Generally arbitration is a significantly more cost effective procedure than litigation.
You only pay for my time spent dealing with your dispute, for confirmation of my hourly rate and terms of engagement please contact me. I may request a security or deposit as part of my engagement, if at the end of the process there is a surplus from this dispute then this will be refunded.
Back to top