By Lord Justice Peter Coulson (Anthology Editor) and David Sawtell (barrister at 39 Essex Chambers) (Anthology Editor). Published by Bloomsbury Publishing, 2023. Pages 432. ISBN 9781509964178. Price Hardcopy £100, Ebook £90

Nicholas Gould and Sana Mahmud of Fenwick Elliott LLP review a collection of essays on the establishment and current workings of the Technology and Construction Court

The Technology and Construction Court (TCC) celebrates its 150th anniversary and a book containing contributions from past and present judges, academics, and lawyers has been published to mark the occasion. The book is edited by Sir Peter Coulson and David Sawtell, and through its contributors, charts the evolution of the TCC from its early beginnings to its present-day incarnation as an internationally renowned specialist dispute resolution forum for complex construction, engineering and technological disputes.

The introduction by Sir Peter Coulson and David Sawtell sets out the background to the creation of the TCC. The Judicature Act 1873 led to the establishment of the Supreme Court of Judicature, which was divided into specialist courts and the Court of Appeal. The same act also created the office of Official Referees, which was recast as the Official Referees’ Business Court in 1971 and ultimately became the TCC (Queen’s Bench Division of the High Court) in 1998.

Dr Elizabeth Norton examines how the courts dealt with disputes prior to the Judicature Act 1873 that established the office of Official Referees, when juries were still used in civil trials. In her essay, she discusses how reform was needed because the use of juries was often ill-suited to technically and factually complex cases, leading to unacceptable delays in the resolution of disputes.

Dr Laura Lintott discusses the formation and development of the office of Official Referees following the Judicature Act 1873, and how a focus on complex disputes eventually became a niche for construction, engineering and technological cases dealt with by a highly competent and specialised court. Dr Lintott notes that judicial procedural innovation and efficiency and consistency of case management was a driving force behind the creation of the office of Official Referees in 1873. The need for and driving of innovative case management is a common theme in