Building Safety Act Focus Group

In the wake of the Grenfell Tower fire, the Building Safety Act (BSA) 2022 reforms building safety legislation and aims to ensure that buildings are designed, constructed, and managed safely, and that any risks are identified and addressed promptly.

There are various important aspects of the BSA. These involve determining what are relevant buildings, what are building safety risks, and, for existing buildings, what relevant defects need to be remedied. In addition, there is a new Gateways regime that may apply in relation to the commencement of building works and permitting occupation after practical completion, as well as changes to building control approvals for works for all buildings. A new duty holder regime for Principal Accountable Persons and Accountable Persons has been introduced for those responsible for higher-risk buildings, as well as a 'Golden Thread of Information', which is a mandatory requirement for the lifecycle of a higher-risk building. 

New regulatory bodies

Various new regulatory bodies have been created, such as the Building Safety Regulator, the New Homes Ombudsman and the National Regulator for Construction Products. New remedies have been introduced in the form of Remediation Orders, Remediation Contribution Orders, Building Liability Orders, and there are now extended limitation periods for bringing / facing a claim pursuant to the now amended Defective Premises Act 1972. This extended period for certain claims also impacts cladding product claims as part of a more extensive regulatory regime on construction and cladding products.

This remains a complex piece of legislation (which continues to be amended and/or additional government guidance / related legislation added), with very serious consequences for failure to comply – including criminal prosecution in some cases. 

Our Building Safety Act Focus Group

Our Building Safety Act Focus Group is an inter-disciplinary group of lawyers, dedicated to providing expertise and guidance on building safety issues. Collectively, the Group has extensive experience in construction & engineering (including fire and structural safety), property, and regulatory law.

Our Building Safety Act Focus Group advises on a wide range of issues associated with building safety, including in relation to:

• advising investors / parties in relation to the sale / purchase of developments impacted by the BSA
• bringing / defending claims (and appeals) in relation to financial liability / contributions concerning building safety remediation works; and what can and cannot be charged under service charge provisions, including:
  • Octagon Overseas Limited & Others v Mr Sol Unsdorfer & others [2023]: Successful in establishing that a manager appointed under Part II LTA 1987 cannot be an Accountable Person for the purposes of the BSA
  • Unsdorfer v Octagon Overseas Limited & Others [2023] UKUT 137 (LC): acting for the landlord in an appeal by the manager of the mixed-use estate against a decision of the First-tier Tribunal which prevented the manager from charging their legal fees to the commercial tenants. The appeal was dismissed, and the landlord was successful
• obligations under the BSA as to various duty holders and new procedures
• structuring construction projects and amending contracts to deal with BSA issues affecting the construction of new buildings
• advising developers, contractors, or other construction professionals embarking on the construction of new HRBs
• advising housebuilders on the extent of their obligations under the Developer Remediation Contract, dealing with licences and documentation required for access to carry out remediation works, advising on provisions in Management Company Appointments for HRBs
• assisting clients in relation to parliamentary calls for evidence concerning BSA matters