Equitable Set-Off - A New Direction After Geldof?

Frances Pigott

August 2015

A paper presented to the Society of Construction Law at a meeting in Birmingham on 21st January 2015

Equitable set-off has traditionally been a difficult defence to define. The Court of Appeal in Geldof Metaalconstructie v Simon Carves reviewed a number of important cases and in drawing the threads together has rationalised the test for equitable set-off. In this paper the judgment of Rix LJ is reviewed and the implications of that judgment considered.

A. Introduction - B. What is impeachment? - C. What is equity? - D. What is 'set-off'? - E. Some examples of equitable set-off - F. Equitable set-off as a defence - G. Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act - H. Historical analysis - I. Conclusion.

The author: Frances Pigott is a barrister specialising in construction and engineering disputes; she was a solicitor for 10 years, started practice as a barrister in 2004 and is now practising at Atkin Chambers in London.

Text: 16 pages