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When the Adjudicator Gets it Horribly Wrong

Paper number
D124

Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart

June 2011

A paper based on a talk given to the Society of Construction Law and Scottish Building Contract Committee in Edinburgh on 3rd March 2011

As can be seen in the two cases featured in this paper, Bouygues v Dahl-Jensen and Geoffrey Osborne v Atkins Rail, sometimes adjudicators can make fundamental mistakes: perhaps as a result of adopting an incorrect method of calculation, or because a sum of money was attributed to the wrong party, or because something was left out of account. Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart considers what remedies the law provides where obvious mistakes are made by adjudicators, both in the courts of England & Wales and Scotland.

Introduction: the problem - A possible solution - The English cases - Bouygues v Dahl-Jensen - Geoffrey Osborne v Atkins Rail - Could this result have been achieved in Scotland? - The final question.

Mr Justice Edwards-Stuart is a judge of the High Court and is a designated judge of the Technology and Construction Court in London.

Text 7 pages.