Why I Almost Always Have an Assistant at My Mediations
One of the themes I have always liked in David Richbell’s How to Master Commercial Mediation is the idea of the mediator progressing from moulding, through maturing, towards mastering the craft. It is a description that has stayed with me, not least because David was much more to me than the author of an excellent […]
Expert Witness Insights Part 6 – Expert Witnesses Don’t Lose Credibility in Court. They Lose It Months Earlier
Part 6 – Expert Witnesses Don’t Lose Credibility in Court. They Lose It Months Earlier. Throughout my previous articles I have considered a number of the professional disciplines that underpin effective expert evidence, including transparency in the use of assistants, maintaining independence, the duty to investigate rather than simply accept instructions and the importance of […]
Expert Witness Insights Part 5 – The Expert Who Never Changes Their Opinion Is Usually the One I Worry About
One of the greatest misconceptions surrounding expert evidence is that consistency is always a virtue. It is often assumed that an expert who never departs from their original opinion is demonstrating confidence, conviction and independence, whilst an expert who modifies their conclusions somehow exposes weakness in their analysis. In reality, my experience has often been […]
A Payment Application Must Comply with the Contract: Netomnia Ltd v MJ Quinn Integrated Services Ltd
The Technology and Construction Court has provided another important reminder that an application for payment must comply not only with the minimum statutory requirements of the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996, but also with any additional and more restrictive requirements agreed by the parties in their contract. In Netomnia Ltd v MJ Quinn […]
Expert Witness Insights – Part 4 The Independent Expert: Independence Is Not a State of Mind
Reflections following the publication of the RICS Surveyors Acting as Expert Witnesses (5th Edition) Following my previous articles considering transparency in the use of Expert Witness assistants and the importance of maintaining independence, the publication of the RICS Surveyors Acting as Expert Witnesses (5th Edition) provides an appropriate opportunity to reflect upon another aspect of […]