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Addleshaw Goddard LLP’s David Shaw, who leadsthe non-contentious side of the practice, is described as ‘a highly intelligent individual, a pragmatist, anda person who can relay the most complex situationsin layman’s terms’. The team has very strong public sector, projects and infrastructure experience, and advised on the £700m Greater Manchester Waste PFI, which is Europe’s largest waste PFI deal to date. Mark Hilton is highly rated for his contentious experience.

Pinsent Masons LLP’s construction offering leverages nicely off the firm’s traditionally strong PFI practice. The team is especially experienced in waste management work and Mark Harris’ five-partner group had a successful year advising Graphite in connection with the construction of the world’s largest autoclave recycling plant. The group ‘provides clear, confident and timely advice’.

DLA Piper UK LLP’s construction team, led by the well-respected Julie Morrissy, continues to operate at a high level. 2008 highlights included acting for the Olympic Delivery Authority on aspects of the North Olympic Park. The group attracted some high-calibre new clients, such as Jones Lang LaSalle, Sheffield Hallam University and GrantRail. Bruce Bentley is also rated.

Eversheds LLP’s construction team is recommended for advising on PFI maintenance contracts, particularly those in the healthcare sector. Key client, the States of Jersey, keeps the team busy, along with a broad client base of public sector and private clients. Department head Andrew Symms offers ‘good general knowledge and sound practical advice’.

Led by Zakir Mulla, Hammonds LLP’s ‘very knowledgeable’ construction team is highly rated for its advice on regeneration. The group attracts a large number of RDAs, including Yorkshire Forward, the London Development Agency and Advantage West Midlands. It is also rated for advising on energy and utilities work, and recently acted for Gaz de France on a biofuel generation project.

With a good balance between contentious and non-contentious construction work, Nabarro LLP continues to offer a quality practice. Martin McKervey heads the team, which acts as key adviser to DEFRA. Over the year, the group has seen some significant waste management work, having advised Biffa on a number of schemes in the north of England. The group is ‘pragmatic, provides a good service, and is available and supportive’.

Walker Morris offers ‘a great deal of construction knowledge and gives good, commercial, practical advice’. As well as strength on the non-contentious side, the team has excellent contentious experience, and 2008 saw it advise Fanmail on a major piece of litigation in the High Court. Practice head Martin Scott ‘is a good person to have on board when the going gets tough‘.

Headed by Andrew Marsh, Beachcroft LLP is ‘direct, commercial and willing to listen’. On the contentious side, the team advised on the Gerrards Cross Tesco Tunnel claim, one of the largest UK-based construction disputes of the past year.

At Cobbetts LLP, Penny Tate is ‘commercial and personable’, while the team, which features Nick Carr, is ‘direct and always willing to listen’. While Tate focuses on the non-contentious side of the practice, Carr is recognised for his skills in arbitration and adjudication. In 2008 the group advised the RDA on the development of a mixed-use scheme in Leeds.

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Legal Developments in the UK

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  • Student employees – new restrictions on employment

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    - Penningtons Solicitors LLP
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    - Bircham Dyson Bell LLP
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    - Bond Pearce LLP
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  • Commission victorious in ‘regulatory holiday’ action brought against Germany

    On 3 December 2009, following an action brought by the European Commission under article 226 of the EC Treaty (now article 258 of the Treaty on the Functioning of the EU) the European Court of Justice (ECJ) confirmed that Germany had failed to comply with its obligations under the European regulatory framework for telecommunications (the Common Regulatory Framework (CRF)). The ECJ’s judgment in European Commission v Germany [2009] confirms that Germany acted unlawfully by adopting a national law excluding ‘new markets’ from regulation – so called ‘regulatory holidays’.
    - SJ Berwin LLP
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    - Berwin Leighton Paisner LLP

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