The fourth edition of Wilmot Smith on Construction Contracts continues to take a clear and practical approach to the law and practice relating to construction contracts in the UK. It provides comprehensive coverage of the substantive law and modern dispute resolution procedures in the field of construction and gives clear guidance when seeking difficult answers.

Paul Darling Q.C. has joined Richard Wilmot-Smith Q.C. as co-editor. Together they have updated, refined and extended the work's coverage. The author team includes new and high-profile practitioners in the field of international arbitration (including Peter Rees Q.C. and David Bateson) and ADR (with Edwin Glasgow Q.C. joining Marion Smith Q.C. in re-casting the chapter on mediation). David Sawtell has considerably re-cast the chapter on adjudication. The law on extra contractual claims (unjust enrichment) has been substantively revised and updated by a leading expert on unjust enrichment.

The work provides key practical tips including: where and when you issue proceedings; what the judges will expect and their preferences; and how trials can be made shorter. A separate section analyses enforcement of adjudicators' awards, covering recent case law on this area. This is carefully examined and digested in detail to ensure the reader has an understanding of the pitfalls of enforcement.

Richard Wilmot-Smith QC and Paul Darling QC ensure that the work continues to provide an essential source of reference on this area of the law. Their practical approach and reliance on clear exposition is prevalent throughout this book, and it is allied with deep scholarship to secure its position as a definitive work on construction law.

Richard Wilmot-Smith, QC, Barrister, 39 Essex Street Chambers,Paul Darling, Barrister, 39 Essex Street Chambers

Richard Wilmot-Smith QC is a barrister at 39 Essex Street Chambers, and a Bencher of Middle Temple.


Paul Darling QC is a barrister at 39 Essex Street Chambers.

Part I: The Contract
1. Contracts: Formation
2. Standard Forms of Contract and Bespoke Contracts
3. Extra-Contractual Claims: Unjust Enrichment
4. Assignment and Sub-Letting, The Contracts (Rights of Third-Parties) Act 1999, and Collateral Warranties
5. The Roles of Professionals
6. Tort and Construction Law
7. Exclusion and Limitation of Liability Clauses
8. Mistake, Misrepresentation, and Frustration
9. Gurantee and Indemnity
10. Certificates and the Right to Payment
11. Time for Completion
12. Damages for Breach of Contract
13. Determination of Forfeiture Clauses
14. Loss and Expense
15. Limitation of Action
16. Injunctions and Specific Performance
17. Bribery
18. Mediation and Alternative Dispute Resolution
19. Adjudication and the HGCRA
20. Arbitration
21. Litigation