Kendrick Construction Ltd v Kershaw Mechanical Services Ltd

Kendrick Construction Ltd v Kershaw Mechanical Services Ltd

Bell Lax acted for Kendrick, the respondent, under a ‘no win, no fee’ agreement in this appeal against an arbitrator’s award.

This case arose from an arbitrator’s award made to Kendrick, which the appellant sought to appeal.

In dismissing the appeal in Kendrick’s favour, the court set an important precedent on how courts should approach challenges to an arbitrator’s award.

The court reasserted that a court would only reverse an arbitrator's decision of law if it was satisfied that the arbitrator, despite the benefit of his relevant experience, had reached the wrong conclusion.

In addition to this, the court highlighted that an arbitrator's findings of fact were conclusive and any attempt to present an appeal on the facts as though it were an appeal on the law must be discourage.

Bell Lax successfully argued that in this case the claimant’s appeal was based on fact, not law and that subsequently the arbitrator’s decision was conclusive. Bell Lax ultimately protected the award made by the arbitrator in favour of its client.

http://www.bailii.org/ew/cases/EWHC/TCC/2006/727.html