Philip Britton – författare

This is the first book to offer a systematic and analytical overview of the legal framework for residential construction. In doing so, the book addresses two fundamental questions:Prevention: What assurances can the law give buyers (and later owners and occupiers) of homes that construction work – from building of a complete home to adding an extension or replacing a shower unit – will comply with minimum standards of design, safety and build quality?Cure: What forms of redress - from whom, and by what route - can residents expect, when, often long after completion of construction, they discover defects?The resulting problems pose some big and difficult questions of principle and policy about standards, rights and remedies, which in turn concern justice more generally.This book addresses these key issues in a comparative context across the United Kingdom, Ireland, Australia and New Zealand. It is an accessible guide to the existing law for residents and construction professionals (and their legal advisers), but also charts a course to further, meaningful reforms of the legal landscape for residential construction around the world.The book’s two co-authors, Philip Britton and Matthew Bell, have taught in the field in the UK, Australia and New Zealand; both have been active in legal practice, as have the book’s two specialist contributors, Deirdre Ní Fhloinn and Kim Vernau.

‘This new edition tells you all you need to know about how construction defects in homes occur, how they might be prevented, and how they might be cured.’Her Honour Frances Kirkham CBE, Atkin ChambersThe first edition of Residential Construction Law in 2021 offered the only systematic and analytical overview of the legal framework for residential construction. Since then, there have been significant legislative and caselaw developments across the UK, Aotearoa New Zealand, Australia and Ireland. In this second edition, the authors and their team of specialist contributors have completely revised the content, taking these changes into account.This new edition refers to more than 350 new cases, along with ground-breaking reforms like the UK’s Building Safety Act 2022 and lessons from the September 2024 Phase 2 report of the Grenfell Tower Inquiry. The book also anticipates planned reforms, including sweeping changes in several Australian states.The revised edition retains the book’s highly accessible structure and readability, making it an indispensable guide for lawyers, industry professionals and homeowners seeking to come to grips with the principles of residential construction law. It also provides an essential starting point for students and practitioners needing to understand the detail of this specialist area. It provides clear statements of the relevant law, explaining – aided by case studies, diagrams, text tables and a glossary – the law’s intended policy outcomes and techniques. It also provides a critical view of areas where those goals have not been attained, requiring further reform.Accompanying online resources for this title can be found at bloomsbury.pub/residential-construction-law