Cases - George Parke v The Fenton Gretton Partnership
Record details
- Name
- George Parke v The Fenton Gretton Partnership
- Date
- [2001]
- Citation
- (TCC) CILL 1712
- Legislation
- Keywords
- Adjudication - construction contract - statutory demand - bankruptcy - set aside statutory demand - enforcement of adjudicator's decision
- Summary
-
Parke appointed Fenton as contractors to refurbish a bar in which he had a leasehold interest. Fenton sought payment of their final account - the sum of £169,269 - but Parke argued that the work had not been finished, that there were snagging works to do and that there had been delays.
Fenton referred the dispute to adjudication. The adjudicator made his decision in favour of Fenton, awarding them the full amount of their claim plus interest and VAT. Parke failed to pay, so Fenton served a statutory demand.
Parke failed to respond to that statutory demand and subsequently applied to have it set aside.
The judge held that the adjudication created a debt that may form the basis of a statutory demand. It falls to be treated in the same way as a judgment or order and the courts will not go behind it. However, on the basis that a separate action was proceeding in the Technology and Construction Court and failure to set aside the statutory demand could result in the bankruptcy of Parke, the judge agreed to set aside the statutory demand.