Weightmans – Setting the parameters for the meaning of ‘design life’

• FOIL
• FOIL Ireland
• FOIL Scotland
• London FOIL

Author - Paul Lowe

Weightmans acted for one of the defendants in the complex multi-party and high value claim by Blackpool Borough Council that a seaside tram depot (“the depot”) designed by VolkerFitzpatrick (“VFL”), failed to meet design life requirements. On 15 June 2020, the High Court handed down its judgment in the case of Blackpool Borough Council v Volkerfitzpatrick Limited & Ors [2020] EWHC 1523 (TCC). The key matter for which the ratio of the judgment provides useful guidance is the meaning of 'design life', an important term deployed in a large number of construction contracts.