"Defects, Quality and Workmanship - Presenting the Evidence"
Defective work and poor workmanship are problems which have been around for a long time. In Hong Kong, high profile cases include the short piling cases almost 20 years ago, and more recently a collapsing sports centre roof, lead in water pipes, controversy over wave absorbing blocks on the Hong Kong-Zhuhai-Macau Bridge and a series of high profile alleged defective works which have rocked the MTR on the Shatin to Central Link. The latter has led to the recent appointment of a Commission of Inquiry to investigate reinforcement works on one project and to make recommendations on measures to promote public safety and assurance on the quality of works.
Conversely, employers are frequently withholding money based on little evidence, often with liability between design and workmanship far from being established. Without sufficient evidence to hand, the contractor can be tried and convicted in the court of public opinion long before defects have even been proven causing irreparable disruption to the business and damage to reputation.
This conference will examine typical standard provisions which deal with defective work, quality and workmanship, why such provisions do not always achieve their aims, and how evidence in such cases should be recorded and subsequently presented to a tribunal.