Welcome to the first edition of 'Building Blocks', Charles Russell's new quarterly on-line update focused on the Construction and Engineering industries. The update is produced by Charles Russell's specialist Construction and Engineering Team. Building Blocks aims to profile legal developments and case law that may affect your business.

In this first edition, we consider major changes impacting the industry over the last 12 months and review a selection of the most significant adjudication and construction cases.

CONSTRUCTION (DESIGN AND MANAGEMENT) REGULATIONS 2007
Statistics illustrate that health and safety remains a key area of concern for the industry. In 2005/2206 there were 59 fatalities and 3,677 major injuries to construction employees. In this context new Construction (Design and Management) Regulations 2007 came into force on 6 April 2007 replacing the 1994 Regulations and the Construction (Health Safety and Welfare) regulations 1996.

For further information on the changes and details of the transitional arrangements please click here.

ADJUDICATION CASE LAW UPDATE
The adjudication process and particularly the enforcement of adjudication decisions have been the subject of a number of cases in the Technology and Construction Court and the Court of Appeal over the last 12 months.

Please click here for an overview of key cases in the last 12 months.

CHANGES TO THE PRE ACTION PROTOCOL FOR CONSTRUCTION AND ENGINEERING DISPUTES
The 6 April 2007 was a busy day for the industry. As well as the introduction of the new CIS Scheme and the new CDM Regulations, a revised Pre-action Protocol for Construction and Engineering Disputes came into force. Pre-action protocols govern the conduct of parties prior to litigation being formally commenced.

For more information on the changes and the applicability of the protocol please click here.

A failure to comply with the new regime will result in tough financial penalties. Please click here for further information on the revised scheme.

CHANGES TO THE HOUSING GRANTS CONSTRUCTION AND REGENERATION ACT 1996
The Housing Grants Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 is renowned for introducing a statutory right to settle disputes through adjudication. However, it also introduced a payment regime which applies to all contracts that are governed by the Act.

For a reminder of the payment provisions under the Scheme and details of the proposed changes click here.