Hexagon and Providence have been engaged in a long running legal dispute about whether the contractor was wrong to terminate its contract with the housing association after enduring persistent late payment.
In the latest development Hexagon has been allowed to appeal a Court of Appeal ruling from August this year. The judgment overturned a High Court decision that found in Hexagon’s favour in 2023. [See previous report here.]
The dispute arose from a JCT contract between Providence and Hexagon for the construction of buildings in Purley, South London, valued at £7.2m.
The key issue was whether Providence could terminate its contract after 21 late payments, even after Hexagon had amended the standard JCT 2016 contract by changing payment terms from 14 to 28 days.
Providence was accused of being “trigger happy”. But the contractor said that it had been left with no alternative but to “go nuclear” and walk away.
Responding to being granted permission to appeal, Hexagon development & sales director Kerry Heath said: “We are pleased to have been granted permission to appeal by the Supreme Court and look forward to seeing a conclusion to this ongoing dispute. In the meantime, we remain focussed on completing the affected project which will provide 37 much needed affordable homes for rent.”
Mark London, senior partner at Devonshires, who represents Hexagon, said: “We are grateful to the Supreme Court for granting permission to appeal on this important matter for the construction sector. We look forward to setting out our arguments in full in court.”
No date has yet been set for the hearing, but it is expected to be held next year.
