As a construction lawyer you need to know about legislative change, allocating the risk appropriately in your contracts and unfortunately how to deal with the disputes when it all goes wrong. Join with experienced legal minds to examine recent case law & regulatory updates, to understand best practice risk allocation in your construction contracts and the key clauses you should employ. Delve into insurance coverage on construction projects and how to use it to your advantage plus gain practical tools and strategies for managing and resolving construction disputes.

Presenters

Christine Gordon, Senior Associate, Simpson Grierson
Christine is a senior associate in Simpson Grierson’s construction group. She is a specialist construction lawyer having developed her skills in London and top tier firms in New Zealand. Christine advises a broad range of construction parties from principals, contractors and sub-contractors to engineers, architects and insurers on issues arising both during and after construction. She has experience with New Zealand and international forms of construction contracts and consultancy services agreements. Christine’s experience extends to acting for parties in resolving complex and high value disputes through court, arbitration, mediation, adjudication, expert determination and other dispute resolution forums.


Tina Hwang, Director, Queen City Law
Tina Hwang is a Director and is the Leader of QCL’s large and award winning Property Team. Tina is also Co-Convenor of The Law Association (previously ADLS) Property Law Committee and member of The Law Association Property Disputes Committee. Tina mainly practises in property, construction and litigation. She has deep and wide experience in virtually all aspects of property law and property development and has been involved in some of New Zealand’s largest property projects. Tina has also developed expertise in construction issues and has presented papers at many New Zealand law seminars on property and construction law. She contributes regularly to the Builders & Contractors Magazine. Tina also speaks fluent Korean. Being client-centric Tina has also taken on numerous employment cases (both employer and employee) and the consequent mediation and settlements. Tina regularly appears in Tribunals and Courts. Clients love working with Tina as she is an excellent communicator, works very efficiently and keeps clients fully informed.

Helen Macfarlane, Partner, Hesketh Henry
With over 25 years legal experience Helen Macfarlane is a partner in Hesketh Henry’s disputes resolution team, focusing on construction and insurance. She read law at Oxford, was admitted as a barrister in London and worked in New York for 15 years with leading international law firm Shearman & Sterling. Joining Hesketh Henry in 2007, Helen has acted on numerous construction disputes, representing contractors, consultants and subcontractors in cases ranging from variation and EOT claims through building defects disputes to major infrastructure project litigation. A firm believer that dispute avoidance starts with clear contractual provisions, Helen also provides front-end drafting advice. Helen is vice president of the New Zealand Society of Construction Law and was instrumental in laying the groundwork for the current review of NZS 3910.

Hazel Bowering-Scott, Senior Associate, Wynn Williams
Hazel is a skilled commercial dispute resolution lawyer based in Queenstown, with extensive experience in construction and insurance law. She specialises in defective building disputes, material damage, and professional indemnity claims, and is highly knowledgeable about the Construction Contracts Act, the Building Act, and industry contracts like NZS 3910. In addition to her expertise in construction law, Hazel handles a broad range of general commercial disputes, including debt recovery, contract disputes, negligence claims, statutory liability, and other company-related issues. Known for her strategic approach, Hazel is a persuasive advocate who focuses on providing practical and effective dispute resolution. She employs a variety of methods, including mediation, arbitration, adjudication, and negotiated settlements, to achieve the best outcomes for her clients.