By Client Legal Director, Natalia Samodina
As a lawyer with a long-held interest in architecture, I was fascinated to read this article written by Richard Waite which was published recently in Architects’ Journal. It centres on the six-month suspension by the Architects Registration Board of a Cheshire-based architect following a dispute with a client over the architect’s fees.
Although we don’t know the nitty gritty of the dispute (and the devil is always in the detail), the basic facts suggest the architect was hired by a client to draw up building plans. No fee was to be charged by the architect for the plans if she were later engaged by the client to oversee the construction process, but crucially, no agreement was reached on the fee for the plans alone if the architect was not to be mandated going forward. The disagreement which followed led to the architect being reported to the ARB for breach of the ARB Code of Conduct, and her subsequent 6-month suspension.
As the architect herself later admitted to the Architects’ Journal: “My advice [to other architects] would be to seek legal representation at the very first contact from the ARB.” And, indeed, engaging a commercial lawyer on an ad hoc basis before the deal was made or even after the dispute already started, could have helped avoid all or some of the consequences that befell the architect.
Better yet, an in-house lawyer working on a part-time, retained basis can support the business on a myriad of issues every day. Typically, SMEs have little to no exposure to the work of an in-house counsel – who provide commercial legal advice from the business’s perspective – and are unaware of the benefits of bringing commercial legal advice ‘in-house’. Rather than calling the cavalry when an incident arises, an in-house lawyer can advise on all aspects of contract law, intellectual property/copyright, negotiating terms with various counterparts and, fundamentally, will ensure appropriate governance is in place to meet the standards of the governing body.
TLD is very well placed to support architects and design professionals. With experienced generalist commercial and corporate lawyers, they can handle most of the work that an architect’s firm would come across and ensure that they do not inadvertently end up in dispute.
Get in touch on 020 3056 8538 or email natalia.samodina@thelegaldirector.co.uk if you would like to know more about how I could help your business.
