Construction law

Although regarded as a sub-branch of general law, construction law has become a specialised discipline in its own right. Most people requiring legal advice in construction would probably seek the services of a construction lawyer rather than a general, ‘all-purpose’ lawyer.

Construction law deals with all legal matters relating to the construction industry in all its manifestations, including building and infrastructure design and construction, business planning, finance and so on. A large part of construction law is formed by contract law, but it also encompasses other areas such as planning law, commercial law, employment law, tort and so on.

Law practices specialising in construction may typically deal with a large variety of subject matter such as drafting of construction contracts, arbitration, tendering disputes, negligence, defective design or construction, dispute resolution, construction claims and so on.

Legal issues are dealt with on Designing Buildings Wiki under a number of headings:

• Contracts / payment.
• Appointments.
• Procurement.
• Regulations.
• Planning permission.
• Case law.
• Taxation.
• Property law.
• Other legislation.
• Health and safety.
• Policy.