The Great ‘Delay’ Debate

INTRODUCTION

HKA and Kennedys invite you to the third and final webinar in it’s ‘Projects in Times of Crisis’ series, a live discussion of contractor vs employer perspectives on matters of construction delay.

In particular, our panel of technical and legal experts will discuss:

• the most important things to consider when preparing and reviewing an extension of time claim;
• the various forms of delay analysis; and
• concurrent delay in practice and under UAE law.

WHO SHOULD ATTEND?

Contractors, Engineers, Employers

MODERATOR

Haroon Niazi
Partner & Head Middle East, HKA

Haroon is a former practicing barrister and a Chartered Quantity Surveyor. He holds an honours degree in Law, a master’s degree in Law and a master’s degree in Quantity Surveying. Haroon sits on the working group committee of the Royal Institution of Chartered Surveyors in Saudi Arabia.

His experience has been gained both in building and civil engineering construction projects where he has provided specialist advice in relation to pre- and post-contract matters for Contractors and Employers alike. Whilst working in the region, Haroon has been involved in both contentious and non-contentious matters. Haroon has led numerous HKA teams working on flagship oil and gas, railway and airport projects throughout the Middle East.

Haroon is responsible for managing the overall business in the Middle East and takes a lead role in agreeing new appointments for HKA, as well as managing the technical deliverables. He is named in Who’s Who Legal – Construction 2020 as a professional that “possesses remarkable case and project management skills” and brings “strategic, legal, technical, financial and commercial” skills to his work.

SPEAKERS

Reza Sabetnia
Director, HKA

Reza has over ten years of civil engineering, construction management, project controls and claims consultancy experience in the engineering and construction industries. He has held a variety of construction positions with contractors and consultants in Australia and the United Arab Emirates and has an impressive portfolio of projects spanning buildings, industrial, infrastructure, oil and gas, and power sectors throughout North Africa, the Middle East and Asia-Pacific.

Reza specialises in claim management and more specifically the delay and disruption analysis in the resolution of claims and disputes on major, complex engineering and construction projects, including many multi-million-dollar megaprojects in the Gulf region.

He leads commissions and manages investigative teams performing forensic planning, project planning and co-ordination, and contracts administration. Reza also plays a key role in training and providing assistance to junior staff within HKA’s Middle East business.

He is proficient with most current standard forms of contract and has an excellent working knowledge of the FIDIC suite of contracts.

Mark Castell
Partner, HKA

Mark trained as a Quantity Surveyor working for large contracting organisations in the United Kingdom principally working on civil engineering projects with an increasing involvement in disputed contractual matters, claims, delays and formal dispute proceedings.

After a period working in France, Mark moved to contract and commercial consultancy in 1999 and then relocated to the Netherlands in 2003. His experience then broadened with involvement in projects in the energy, marine and offshore, building, infrastructure, process and industrial sectors in Europe (including Belgium, Bulgaria, France, Germany, Luxembourg, the Netherlands, Norway, Poland, Portugal, Romania and the UK), Africa (including Egypt, Gambia, Libya, Kenya and Nigeria) the Far East, the Middle East (Iraq, UAE and Oman), Australia, United States and the Caribbean. In 2019, Mark then moved to the United Arab Emirates.

Mark has been appointed as Expert Witness on more than 25 occasions on quantum and delay matters covering the effects of re-measurement; variations / changes to work scope; disruption; delays and extensions to completion dates; acceleration and claims related to defects and incomplete work. These appointments have concerned disputes of more than US$110m and several years of delay. He has given both written and oral evidence to tribunals and courts, has experience of witness conferencing and has been cross examined by counsel on a number of occasions in international arbitration proceedings. Mark has also undertaken binding expert determination (in Europe and the Middle East) and has been a court-appointed Expert (in the Netherlands) on both quantum and delay matters.

Mark Wilson
Partner, Kennedys

Mark is qualified in New Zealand (1985), England and Wales (1991) and Hong Kong (1992).

Mark has a wealth of over 30 years’ experience specialising in construction and construction insurance-related dispute resolution (arbitration, litigation and ADR). He commenced practice in New Zealand before re-locating to Hong Kong, where he joined Kennedys in 2001. He was one of the founding partners of the firm’s Dubai office, where he is the head of our construction practice, and has been based there since 2006. His clients include developers, contractors/subcontractors, construction professionals and insurers/reinsurers.

Mark is experienced in construction/engineering and construction insurance-related dispute resolution (litigation, arbitration and ADR), project advice, contract/policy interpretation and drafting. His clients include developers, contractors/subcontractors, construction professionals and insurers/reinsurers.

Mark is routinely listed in Who’s Who Legal: Construction (United Arab Emirates section). He is a recipient of a Lexology Client Choice Award: Insurance (United Arab Emirates) and a Corporate Livewire Global Award (Construction & Real Estate). He has authored articles published in the Construction Law Journal and the Hong Kong Law Journal, amongst others.

Jamie Kellick
Partner, Kennedys

Jamie is a construction and commercial dispute resolution partner based in our Dubai office.

Experienced in both contentious construction and commercial issues, as well as regularly instructed in relation to non-contentious construction matters, Jamie’s practice encompasses the GCC market and wider region. His construction clients are international engineering and construction contractors, international joint venture project companies and local developers and entities.

With extensive alternative dispute resolution (ADR) experience, Jamie has represented clients in arbitrations, mediations, expert determinations and adjudications.

Jamie is a fellow of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators and has been appointed as an arbitrator in institutional and ad hoc arbitrations in Oman, the UAE and England. He is also an accredited mediator. He is a board member of the Oman Commercial Arbitration Centre and transitional secretary to the CIArb Oman Branch (currently under formation).

Recognised by Who’s Who in Construction Law for Oman and UAE, Jamie is also listed in Chambers & Partners Global as a foreign law expert for construction and disputes in both jurisdictions as well as being ranked by Legal 500 EMEA as a leading dispute resolution individual in Oman.