Costain Ltd & Ors v Bechtel Ltd & Anor

Costain Ltd & Ors v Bechtel Ltd & Anor

CORBER established that there are serious questions to be tried regarding whether RLE’s duty is to act impartially and whether Bechtel and Mr Bassily procured a breach of contract. However, the application for interim injunctions is refused because the contract provides adequate remedies, damages are an adequate remedy, and the proposed injunctions would be difficult to supervise and affect third parties. The balance of convenience does not favour granting an injunction.

Parties
Claimant/applicant: Costain Limited; Claimant/applicant: O’Rourke Civil Engineering Limited; Claimant/applicant: Bachy Soletanche Limited; Claimant/applicant: Emcor Drake & Scull Group PLC; Defendant/respondent: Bechtel Limited; Defendant/respondent: Mr Fady Bassily
Jurisdiction
England and Wales
Judgment Date
20 May 2005
Procedural Posture
Application for Interim Injunctions (civil/construction) / Ruling on Application for Interim Injunctions
Outcome
Application for interim injunction refused
Legal Topics
Interim Injunctions, Duties of Project Managers/certifiers, Implied Terms in Construction Contracts, Tort of Procuring Breach of Contract
Construction Law Contract Law Tort Law Interim Injunctions Duties of Project Managers/certifiers Implied Terms in Construction Contracts Tort of Procuring Breach of Contract

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Parties

Costain Limited

Claimant/applicant

O’Rourke Civil Engineering Limited

Claimant/applicant

Bachy Soletanche Limited

Claimant/applicant

Emcor Drake & Scull Group PLC

Claimant/applicant

Bechtel Limited

Defendant/respondent

Mr Fady Bassily

Defendant/respondent

Procedural Posture

Application for Interim Injunctions (civil/construction) / Ruling on Application for Interim Injunctions

Legal Issues

  1. 1 What did Mr Bassily instruct Bechtel’s staff to do at the 15 April meeting?
  2. 2 Is RLE’s duty when assessing sums payable to CORBER under contract C105 to act impartially or in the interests of the employer?
  3. 3 Has RLE acted in breach of its duty as defined?

Ratio Decidendi

CORBER established that there are serious questions to be tried regarding whether RLE’s duty is to act impartially and whether Bechtel and Mr Bassily procured a breach of contract. However, the application for interim injunctions is refused because the contract provides adequate remedies, damages are an adequate remedy, and the proposed injunctions would be difficult to supervise and affect third parties. The balance of convenience does not favour granting an injunction.

Court Disposition

Application for interim injunction refused

Orders

  • Application for interim injunctions dismissed