Recovery of an Adjudicator's Fees

A trend that we have noticed over the past few months is the reluctance of the losing party not only to pay his opponent but also the Adjudicator’s own fees.

The winning party has the option of going to court to obtain an order for summary judgment to force his opponent to pay.  An Adjudicator does not have that luxury.

At present, an Adjudicator has been prevented from holding back his decision until payment of his fees has been made.  Other options tried by Adjudicators include making the referring party pay “up front” or seeking a contribution for both parties at the start of the Adjudication. However, these are not mandatory and a refusal from either or both parties to this request may upset the Adjudicator, but once he has accepted the appointment, he has to continue.

The only option an Adjudicator has is to sue for his fee. Often, fees are around the £5,000.00 level.  If they are below that, then if issued in the Small Claims Court, no legal costs are recoverable. One way however is to issue the claim and then make an application for summary judgment.

Silver Shemmings specialise in construction claims and are able to assist in recovery of such fees. 

For more information and initial advice please contact us on:

Sarah Shemmings or Richard Silver

Tel.:     0845 345 1244
Email:  office@shemmingsllp.co.uk

Robert Shawyer – Cardiff

Tel.:     02920 474 570
Email:  cardiff@shemmingsllp.co.uk

Don’t forget that you can also make initial contact through our free helpline 08455 1 92 92 1