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William Haslam

Call: 2022

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Overview Expertise Related Insights, Events & Cases

William Haslam joined Atkin Chambers as a tenant in September 2024, following successful completion of his pupillage. William has trained in Chambers’ core practice areas of construction, engineering and infrastructure, energy and utilities, and general commercial disputes. William has experience of all stages of litigation and arbitration and has worked with a variety of standard form construction contracts including JCT and NEC forms.

William studied Geography at the University of Cambridge where he came first overall in his year and won numerous prizes and scholarships. William spent a year as a Herchel Smith Scholar at Harvard University, where he studied at Harvard Law School before obtaining a distinction in his GDL and Bar Course studies. William was also awarded the Society of Construction Law’s Hudson Essay Prize.

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Prior to joining Chambers, William spent a year working as a judicial assistant to Lord Justice Coulson in the Court of Appeal. During this time he worked on a number of construction, insurance, procurement and commercial cases including URS v BDW [2023] EWCA Civ 772; Kajima Construction v Children’s Ark Partnership [2023] EWCA Civ 292 and Sudlows v Global Switch Estates [2023] EWCA Civ 292.

William also gained experience as a visiting law lecturer at University of Greenwich and as a paralegal in a specialist education law firm where he represented clients in the First-Tier Tribunal.

William is also experienced with a range of County Court matters, including applications for default judgment, strike out and full trials.

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Expertise

William has worked on a wide range of construction and engineering disputes and drafted numerous advices, pleadings and skeleton arguments. He is familiar with bespoke and standard form construction contracts. Recent work during pupillage and in practice includes:

  • Drafting advice and letter of claim for a homeowner extension dispute.
  • Drafting submissions for a complex multi-million pound final account adjudication for a flagship London development.
  • Drafting advice for a developer on a claim under the Defective Premises Act 1972
  • Drafting a Defence and Counterclaim in the Technology & Construction Court in respect of a dispute involving the design and construction of a new football pitch
  • Drafting advice on the operation of liquidated damages provisions in a contract for the provision of a new cancer treatment centre.
  • Drafting Particulars of Claim on behalf of an employer in a fire safety defect claim arising out of defectively designed and constructed cladding works by a sub-contractor.
  • Assisting with a CMC in a high-end residential building defect claim.
  • Drafting Particulars of Claim on behalf of a developer in a claim against geotechnical engineers.
  • Drafting advice for an employer on compensation event issues in an amended NEC contract.
  • Drafting advice on the merits of a loss and expense claim for a bespoke contract concerned with a luxury flat renovation.
  • Drafting Particulars of Claim against a specialist sub-contractor for defective drainage in a new-build housing development.
  • Drafting a Defence on behalf of a contractor in a complex defect claim arising from the construction of a new boarding school accommodation block.
  • Drafting advice on the effect of deed of variation for the delayed construction of a high-end apartment.
  • Drafting skeleton arguments for various interim applications, including for pre-action disclosure, permission to amend a statement of case, summary judgment and strike out.
  • Drafting advice on the liability of an architect for fire safety defects, involving issues of contract formation, tortious liability, claims under the Defective Premises Act and limitation.
  • Drafting advice for engineers on their exposure to claims under the Defective Premises Act and Contribution Act.
  • Drafting advice for a developer on the liability of multiple parties in a fire safety defect claim concerning a high-profile London development.

William’s energy and natural resources experience during pupillage and in practice includes:

  • Advising on multiple Ghanaian gas-fired power station disputes, involving a bespoke EPC contract,
  • Advising on the availability of calling on bonds in the context of an energy plant dispute
  • Assisting with research for an arbitration concerning a LNG facility in the Middle East (ICC Rules).
  • Drafting a Defence in a claim for breach of confidentiality in a North Sea gas license dispute.
  • Drafting advice on a commercial dispute for the supply of electricity to a data centre.
  • Assisting with research for a profit-sharing dispute arising from a PFI energy-from-waste facility.

William has experience in all stages of domestic adjudications during pupillage and in practice including:

  • Drafting Response and Rejoinder in a multi-million final account dispute involving claims for extension of time, loss and expense and variations.
  • Drafting Notice of Adjudication and Referrals for a range of disputes, including payment disputes, defect cases and ‘smash and grab’
  • Drafting advice on the consequences of an adjudicator’s decision.
  • Drafting advice on the merits of termination and good-faith arguments in a long-term repairs contract for a dispute referred to adjudication.
  • Drafting advice on raising jurisdiction arguments to challenge an adjudicator’s decision.

William has experience in a number of international arbitrations and adjudications during pupillage and in practice including:

  • Drafting submissions on jurisdiction for a Singaporean seated arbitration arising from the sale of a South-East Asian bank
  • Assisting with research for an arbitration concerning LNG facility in the Middle East (ICC Rules).
  • Assisting with questions of causation and indemnities for a Hong Kong seated arbitration arising from serious bridge defects.

William has experience in a range of commercial disputes both during pupillage and in practice, including:

  • Drafting submissions for a civil fraud claim under UAE and DIFC law
  • Drafting Particulars of Claim in a restitution claim arising from a commercial agreement for the supply of social housing.
  • Drafting a skeleton argument for a strike out application in a civil fraud case under DIFC law.
  • Drafting a Defence in a commercial dispute involving issues of termination and repudiation in a long-term contract.
  • Drafting a Defence in a claim for breach of confidentiality in a North Sea gas license dispute.
  • Assisting with research on declaratory relief on a commercial dispute concerning the probity of a high-value London property transaction.
  • Drafting advice on a commercial dispute for the supply of electricity to a data centre.

During pupillage, William gained experience in a variety of insurance disputes including:

  • Drafting advice for an employer on issues of insurance coverage under an amended JCT Contract.
  • Drafting advice on issues of professional indemnity insurance coverage and notification in respect of defectively built modular student accommodation.

William has worked on a number of matters involving the Building Safety Act 2022, building on his experience in the Court of Appeal where this Act was considered:

  • Drafting advice to freeholders, leaseholders and RMCs on the applicable obligations under the BSA and associated leaseholder regulations
  • Advising head leaseholder on its service charge rights and notification obligations under Schedule 8 BSA and Leaseholder Protection regulations.

During and prior to pupillage William worked on a range of procurement disputes, including:

  • Marshalling a Deputy High Court judge with a trial concerning limitation provisions in procurement challenges.
  • In the Court of Appeal, assisting with multiple procurement cases including IGT v Gambling Commission [2023] EWHC 1961, Braceurself v NHS England [2024] EWCA Civ 39 and Bromcom v United Learning [2022] EWHC 3262.

Additional Information

William speaks conversational French.

Qualifications

  • BPTC, City Law School (2021 – 2022)
  • Graduate Diploma in Law, City University (2020 –  2021)
  • Herchel Smith Scholar, Harvard University (2019 – 2020)
  • BA Geography at Emmanuel College (University of Cambridge) (First Class with distinction, ranked 1st in the year) (2016 – 2019)

Awards

  • Gray’s Inn Residential Scholar, Roger Cox Scholarship, Graeme Hamilton Scholarship
  • Society of Construction Law, Hudson Essay Prize, First Prize
  • Vis East International Arbitration Moot, international 3rd best oralist
  • National Undergraduate Dissertation Prize, Transport Geography Research Group

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For more information please contact our clerks on
+44 (0)20 7404 0102 or clerks@atkinchambers.com

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