CLS CIVIL ENGINEERING LTD v WJG EVANS AND SONS (A PARTNERSHIP)

[2024] EWHC 194 (TCC), Technology and Construction Court, Neil Moody KC sitting as a Deputy Judge of the High Court, 2 February 2024

CPR Part 8 – Whether claim suitable for Part 8 proceedings – Whether relationship between parties governed by letter of intent

The claimant sought a declaration that no construction contract had been concluded between the parties, that any legal relationship between them was governed by a letter of intent (which itself had been the subject of a number of amendments) and that the claimant's maximum liability to the defendant under that letter, as revised, was £1,100,000. The defendant for its part maintained that the proceedings involved substantial disputes of fact such that the matter was not suitable for determination by means of Part 8 proceedings. The defendant's case rested in large upon a claim that the parties had entered into a contract on JCT terms which did not contain a cap on the amount which it could claim.