M
mad4law
Guest
Mr Jonathon Price is the freeholder of a two-storey property in Lanarkshire, which forms part of a terrace of residential properties. Mr. Price has used the property exclusively as an office space from where he runs his charity, Millenium-Rhino-Alert. Mr. Price was keen to extend and renovate the property with his own funds. He was keen to knock out an internal wall on the upper floor, install a glass roof and introduce French bay windows to add light and a greater sense of space. Initially Mr. Price consulted a firm of architects but, due to the high cost of their fees, Mr. Price instead approached an old friend, Mr. James Owens. Mr. Owens qualified as an architect over five years ago and has recently been made a partner in a rival firm, McKenzie & McEwan Ltd. Mr. Price hoped that Mr. Owens would agree to do the work for free as a personal favour. After discussing the matter over a number of days Mr. Price agreed to take charge of the work, which he thought would be good experience. Mr. Price asked Mr. Owens to design the conversion, to choose the materials and supervise the work. Mr Owens responded that he was an expert when it came to this type of work, and in particular when choosing how best to knock out internal walls, and that the entire project was in keeping with his everyday work. He also mentioned that he was happy to be involved as he was not too busy at the moment. A few days later, after discussing the project with his fellow partners at McKenzie & McEwan Ltd, Mr. Owens told Mr. Price that they were delighted and that they had agreed to him working during office hours if necessary. As previously arranged, Mr. Owens took charge of the project, both in its design and management, and engaged Built-to-Last Ltd, a local construction firm based in Glasgow, to undertake the work. The work was completed by early 2006 with only one minor delay. Built-to-Last Ltd could not receive the “climate-proof glass” that Mr. Owens had requested from their sub-contractor and as Mr. Price was keen to have the job completed, Built-to-Last Ltd decided to fit “OK-climate-proof-NOW” glass instead. In taking this decision, Built-to-Last relied upon confirmation from a local specialist that the glass would be suitable for use in the room.
Unfortunately for Mr. Price the conversion has proved a nightmare. The large room is unbearably hot in summer and glacier cold in winter. Severe condensation regularly forms on the windows and recently cracks have appeared in both the glass roof and bay window, whilst the wooden window frames have started to buckle. Accordingly, Mr. Price has withheld payment of the final £3000 owed to Built-to-Last Ltd under the agreed contract. He has since been told by an independent expert surveyor that the condensation and temperature changes are caused by the fact that “climate-proof” glass was not used. Added to the temperature problems, the expert surveyor is of the opinion that the glass ceiling and bay window could shatter at any moment. The surveyor has further informed Mr. Price that a dividing wall that has been removed was a load-bearing wall and has been knocked down without putting in RSJs. As a result the upper floor is at risk of collapsing and is extremely dangerous. Remedial work, involving the replacement of glass and window-frames, in addition to the introduction of RSJs is accordingly essential. The independent surveyor expressed shock and dismay when told that the work had been approved by a qualified architect. Mr. Price has recently received a quotation from “Fix-U-Up.com” totaling £34,000 as the cost of the remedial work.
Advise Mr Price as to whether:
(1) he has a claim against Mr. James Owens, and if so, advise generally about liability;
(2) he has a claim in addition against the partners at Mr. Owens firm, and if so, advise generally about liability.
(3) he has a claim against Built-to-Last Ltd, and if so, advise generally about liability. In particular, discuss the potential liability of Built-to-Last Ltd for installing “OK-climate-proof-NOW” glass as opposed to “climate-proof” glass.
Advise Built-to-Last Ltd as to whether:
(4) they have any legal right to receive the final withheld payment of £3000 from Mr. Price.
In answering the above questions you are not expected to be aware of particular standard form contracts, nor of the details of legislation affecting the construction industry, but you should base your answers upon your general knowledge of the law
Unfortunately for Mr. Price the conversion has proved a nightmare. The large room is unbearably hot in summer and glacier cold in winter. Severe condensation regularly forms on the windows and recently cracks have appeared in both the glass roof and bay window, whilst the wooden window frames have started to buckle. Accordingly, Mr. Price has withheld payment of the final £3000 owed to Built-to-Last Ltd under the agreed contract. He has since been told by an independent expert surveyor that the condensation and temperature changes are caused by the fact that “climate-proof” glass was not used. Added to the temperature problems, the expert surveyor is of the opinion that the glass ceiling and bay window could shatter at any moment. The surveyor has further informed Mr. Price that a dividing wall that has been removed was a load-bearing wall and has been knocked down without putting in RSJs. As a result the upper floor is at risk of collapsing and is extremely dangerous. Remedial work, involving the replacement of glass and window-frames, in addition to the introduction of RSJs is accordingly essential. The independent surveyor expressed shock and dismay when told that the work had been approved by a qualified architect. Mr. Price has recently received a quotation from “Fix-U-Up.com” totaling £34,000 as the cost of the remedial work.
Advise Mr Price as to whether:
(1) he has a claim against Mr. James Owens, and if so, advise generally about liability;
(2) he has a claim in addition against the partners at Mr. Owens firm, and if so, advise generally about liability.
(3) he has a claim against Built-to-Last Ltd, and if so, advise generally about liability. In particular, discuss the potential liability of Built-to-Last Ltd for installing “OK-climate-proof-NOW” glass as opposed to “climate-proof” glass.
Advise Built-to-Last Ltd as to whether:
(4) they have any legal right to receive the final withheld payment of £3000 from Mr. Price.
In answering the above questions you are not expected to be aware of particular standard form contracts, nor of the details of legislation affecting the construction industry, but you should base your answers upon your general knowledge of the law