Legal issues for UK construction businesses, Winter 2021

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Legal issues for UK construction businesses, Winter 2021

Legal issues for UK construction businesses, Winter 2021

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December 6, 2021

Our latest round-up of articles on recent issues and news affecting UK construction businesses.

To discuss how these issues might affect your business, please get in touch with one of the Key Contacts.

Construction law
Climate change and achieving net zero
Dispute resolution
Issues for commercial and HR directors
Real estate and planning law
Coronavirus (COVID-19), the "New Dynamic" and post-Brexit issues

Construction law
Legislation updates	Our regular round-ups of new and proposed legislation affecting the construction industry are published as the "State of Play" column in Construction Law. Recent editions include: Summary of new and proposed legislation, November 2021 (UK construction focus) Summary of new and proposed legislation, October 2021 Summary of new and proposed legislation, July/August 2021 Parts of the above were published by Construction Law as the State of Play tables numbers: 264 (1 November 2021); 263 (1 October 2021); and 262 (3 August 2021) respectively.
Choice of English law	Mark Macaulay discusses the Choice of English law for international construction contracts in a recent article for Construction Law.
Building safety	The change in approach to building safety must start now (first published in Construction Law).

Climate change and achieving net zero
Achieving net zero and other ESG considerations	Our new webpage, Achieving Net Zero, UK Construction Focus, was launched before the COP26 conference in Glasgow. It contains a range of informative materials to help construction businesses better understand the global, UK and UK construction industry approach to achieving net zero in the face of climate change. Articles include: The critical role of infrastructure in reaching UK net zero targets Q&A on challenges facing the UK construction industry in shifting to a net zero economy UK construction sector initiatives focused on achieving net zero A guide to key international climate change agreements and terminology (UK focus) Managing construction risk – a new approach to contract drafting The "ESG" Agenda (UK Construction Focus) See also Reflections on Glasgow COP26.
Housebuilding	Housebuilding's crucial role in achieving net zero: the Future Homes Delivery Plan (first published in Construction Law).
Press	Our "interview" appeared in The Times Scotland here: Construction industry building a framework for net zero target.
Energy sector	Dentons' Energy team publishes articles on a wide range of energy issues on the Dentons Global Energy Blog. Recent articles include: UK Energy White Paper announces very busy 2021 UK hydrogen policy takes shape (1): publication of the UK Hydrogen Strategy UK hydrogen policy takes shape (2): defining “low carbon hydrogen” UK hydrogen policy takes shape (3): financial support (part 1) UK hydrogen policy takes shape (4): financial support (part 2)

Dispute resolution
ADR focus	The following articles were first published in the ADR column in the Construction Law magazine: Courtesy paves the way for compromise (Construction Law link) Let's ditch the A in ADR (23 November 2021) New Digital DR Rules (UK construction focus) (24 September 2021)
Expert evidence	Michael Wright and Millie Leonard gave their views on How can the solicitor assist in safeguarding expert evidence? (As published in the October issue of the Expert Witness Journal (see page 98)).
Climate change litigation	Climate Change Litigation risks for UK companies

Issues for commercial and HR directors
Employment law immigration and health and safety	Updates on employment, benefits, pensions and immigration are published on our UK People Reward and Mobility Hub. Recent articles include: International Day of People with Disabilities: “Fighting for rights in the post-COVID era” Flexible working – three in four jobs fail to offer flexible working The European Court of Justice provides further clarification on what constitutes “working time” under the Working Time Directive (2003/88/EC) Achieving diversity goals without discriminating Employee or independent contractor? A global perspective Mitigating factors – a stark reminder of the importance of mitigation when dealing with alleged misconduct Apprenticeships: what employers need to know For more articles or to sign up to our Employment team's blog, click here.

Issues for commercial and HR directors

Employment law immigration and health and safety

Updates on employment, benefits, pensions and immigration are published on our UK People Reward and Mobility Hub. Recent articles include:

For more articles or to sign up to our Employment team's blog, click here.

Real estate and planning law
Rent arrears	Rent arrears in the COVID era: how the pandemic has impacted the landlord tenant relationship

Coronavirus (COVID-19), the "New Dynamic" and post-Brexit issues
Dentons' COVID-19 hub	Dentons' COVID-19 (Coronavirus) hub is a valuable source of information relating to COVID-19 and includes a knowledge bank, sector hub and insights, webinar hub and some useful links as well as a country-specific search facility and sector-specific resources such as the Real Estate & Construction Hub. The hub also provides access to our COVID-19 Pro Bono hub containing legal resources to support charities, NGOs and other not-for-profit organisations globally, and our various multi-country COVID-19 comparison tools (see problem-solve a wide variety of COVID-19 related challenges).
Supporting your business in the New Dynamic and ESG	There is no new normal for any organisation for the foreseeable future. We provide tools and insights to help address this "New Dynamic" here, on our New Dynamic Hub, as well as the latest global legal news and guidance on progressing a digital strategy at this time and quick pivots to consider. New material includes resources on Leading your in-house legal team.
Post-Brexit issues	For articles on issues arising following the UK's exit from the EU, visit our website: https://www.dentons.com/en/issues-and-opportunities/brexit. Recent articles include: The fate of post-Brexit jurisdiction clauses.