TRANSPORT FOR GREATER MANCHESTER v KIER CONSTRUCTION LTD (TRADING AS KIER CONSTRUCTION - NORTHERN)

[2021] EWHC 804 (TCC), Technology and Construction Court, O’Farrell J, 31 March 2021

Adjudication – Notice of dissatisfaction in respect of decision of adjudicator – Whether validly issued – Jurisdiction – Contract – CPR Part 8

The claimant, Transport for Greater Manchester, issued a Part 8 claim in which it sought a final determination of a dispute which had been referred to adjudication by the defendant, Keir Construction Ltd, in an attempt to reverse the decision of the adjudicator. The defendant resisted the application on the ground that the court had no jurisdiction to hear the Part 8 claim. The question of whether or not the court had jurisdiction turned on the issue of whether the claimant had given a valid notice of dissatisfaction in respect of the decision of the adjudicator. The defendant’s case was that the claimant had not done so with the consequence that the claimant had failed to preserve its right to challenge the decision of the adjudicator through legal proceedings.