Using adjudication to resolve disputes when one of the parties is insolvent

Peter Vinden

September 2010

A paper based on that presented to the Society of Construction Law at a meeting in Leeds on 19th January 2010

This paper addresses the impact of corporate insolvency on parties who wish to take advantage of the right to adjudicate contained in the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996. Peter Vinden begins by looking at the background, and the types of insolvency procedures available. He then considers adjudication where the responding party is subject to an insolvency procedure, looking in particular at the criteria for permission to adjudicate being given. He briefly looks at adjudiction commenced by insolvent companies, before moving on to the vital issue of enforcing an adjudicator's decision when a respondent alleges that the claimant is insolvent, or the claimant is subject o insolvency proceedings.

The economic landscape - Corporate insolvency - Adjudication against insolvent companies - Adjudication on behalf of insolvent companies - The approach of the courts to enforcing a decision when an allegation of insolvency has been made - Adjudication on behalf of administrative receivers, administrators, liquidators and supervisors of CVAs - Summary and conclusions.

The author: Peter Vinden is Managing Director of the Vinden Partnership and a practising adjudicator.

Text 16 pages