A STUDY OF THE STATUTORY ADJUDICATION DETERMINATIONS IN THE PERIOD OF 2005 TO 2010

Abstract

The Building and Construction Industry Security of Payment Act since its official operation in 2005, to a certain extent, has been successful in promoting a speedy and cost-effective dispute resolution method to the industry players and thus help to facilitate the cash flow in the industry. An increasing number of applications have been lodged to Singapore Mediation Centre over the years. The analysis on the adjudication determinations has suggested that, to a certain level, the awareness of the industry players of the operation of the Act have fairly increased. However, the remaining very high number of cases where the Respondent failed to served a payment response or served an invalid one has indicated that that many are still in the dark with regards to the regulations and requirements under the Act. The study also suggests that while there has been a general consensus among the Adjudicators in terms of the position they took in arriving at the final decision of each case, there are still different views on several issues taken by some Adjudicators with regard to the interpretation of the provisions of the Act., such as the ‘loss and expense’ claim, work claimed in earlier payments and the operation of section 15(3) of the Act. Noteworthy issues which were raised in cases are also addressed in this study.