The Hudson formula: Death by Footnote?

Ronan Champion

September 2021

The first prize winning entry in the Hudson Essay Prize 2020 which was presented to the Society of Construction Law on 7th September 2021.

This paper assesses the Hudson formula, a formula created over 50 years ago that provides a means of calculating a contractor’s lost contribution to head-office overheads and profit as a result of delays to completion of a construction project. The paper seeks to address two questions: First, is the Hudson formula now redundant, following a footnoted change to the formula in 2020 that makes it indistinguishable from Emden’s formula? Second, might parties be better served by contractual provisions aimed at providing a basis for calculation of compensation that is simple and predictable and is any such solution available?

Introduction – What is the original Hudson Formula? – Some background – Troubled from the start – Price vs cost based approaches – Some alternatives to Hudson – Conclusion

The author: Ronan Champion is a Chartered Surveyor and partner of Champion Pearce LLP. He is a former chair of the Society of Construction Law.

Text: 12 pages