The National Specialist Contractors' Council (NSCC) held a second seminar on adjudication for Specialist Contractors on Tuesday 9 June at leading law firm, Anderson Strathern LLP, in Edinburgh.

The half-day seminar, which welcomed Managing Directors, Contracts Managers and Quantity Surveyors from a range of specialist trades, showed how the adjudication process could be used quickly and simply to obtain monies in the event of non-payment.

Supported by the Association of Independent Construction Adjudicators (AICA) and Anderson Strathern LLP, the event featured a first-rate line up of speakers who gave advice on avoiding the most common adjudication pitfalls in order to maximise the chances of success.


The day's highlight was a mock adjudication involving a dispute where one party was represented by a lay person and the other by 'Very Big Expensive Solicitors'. The meeting, which was conducted by a leading AICA adjudicator, provided delegates with an ideal opportunity to see how to prepare and present their case.

Commenting on the event’s success, Karyn Watt, a Partner at Anderson Strathern LLP who chaired the seminar on behalf of NSCC, said: "In the current economic situation, adjudication is becoming more prevalent as contractors have to fight to be paid.

"The NSCC seminar showed that adjudication is a useful tool for Specialist Contractors which can be used to resolve disputes relating to payment within 28 days."

The NSCC Adjudication Seminar was organised as part of the NSCC Fair Payment Campaign, which was launched in September 2007 to improve payment practices in the construction industry. It has 3 key objectives: certainty of payment, 30-day payment periods, and the removal of retentions. NSCC is encouraging everyone within the industry committed to fair payment practices to support the Fair Payment

Campaign by signing up at www.fairpaymentcampaign.co.uk