Collapse of a Building

A property that was undergoing extension and renovation collapsed whilst the basement was being excavated. The collapse caused injury to three workmen, one of whom was grievously injured.

There were three defendants; the owner of the property, his builder and the sub-contractor who was excavating the basement. Each of the workmen brought a claim against the three defendants.

Further, the defendants had claims and counterclaims against each other, including a claim for the rebuilding of the property.

All the defendants were insured but there were issues regarding the extent of the insurance cover available to meet the claims, claims which ran into millions of pounds.

At the mediation it was possible, for the first time, for the defendants to have a frank exchange of views as to their respective positions and to confide to me their concerns and desired outcomes.

This enabled me to broker an agreement between the defendants which in turn enabled the claimants’ claims and the defendants' claims against each other  to be settled on terms acceptable to all the parties. This was achieved in a single day, albeit a long one.

Had settlement not been achieved, a trial which was listed for eight days would have taken place in the High Court. The costs savings for all the parties by participating in the mediation are obvious.