2018 Didn't Kill "Smash And Grab" Adjudications

The death of the smash and grab adjudication was widely reported in 2018 but has perhaps been exaggerated to grab the headlines. So what happened in 2018 to get everyone talking? In July 2018 we reported on Grove Developments Limited v S&T (UK) Limited, a case that had significant implications for the potency of 'smash and grab' adjudications. In his ruling, Mr Justice Coulson differentiated between disputes over the valuation of a payment application, and disputes over payment applications where no such valuation exercise was involved. He concluded that, in the former scenario, it should be possible to cross-adjudicate on the merits of the payment application. But, in spite of the Court of Appeal upholding the first instance decision in November 2018, the concept of smash and grab is not dead.