Flaws in Defence counterclaim Help

[simeon1964]

 

I now need to ask Questions: Here is expert report Part1 and Part2 follows:

 

 

 

 

 

 

I now need to ask Questions: Here is expert report Part2 continuation:

 

shedule of photographs .pdf

[FTMDave]

Look forward to the questions.

 

And your own Witness Statement which we've asked twice to see, going way back to October 28.

[Manxman in exile]

So remind me, you were counterclaiming for £17,000?

 

And is the expert witness saying that he costs the work needed to put things right at only  £1,000?

 

Is that what he's saying?

[simeon1964]

7 hours ago, Manxman in exile said:

And is the expert witness saying that he costs the work needed to put things right at only  £1,000?

 

 

I received this late yesterday and do not understand it fully well myself. I need help here

 

[BazzaS]

Well, what do you think the expert is saying you are entitled to?

 

The expert has looked at what you are saying is wrong and needs fixing, dividing it up into each item you’ve said isn’t up to scratch, and assessed if you are owed anything at all for that item, according to their expert opinion.

 

Where you are owed something, they’ve assessed how much you are owed, in their expert opinion.

 

The total, in their expert opinion, reaches £1,000, comprised of the subheadings they’ve split it into.

 

What other conclusion can you reach from reading the jointly instructed expert’s report?

Edited December 22, 2022 by BazzaS

[simeon1964]

2 minutes ago, BazzaS said:

Well, what do you think the expert is saying you are entitled to

I don't know he doesn't say, is that one of the questions I should be asking?

[BazzaS]

I think the expert states it clearly.

 

I think the problem is you don’t accept that the expert thinks you are entitled to only £1,000 (not the £17,000 you now haven’t established you are owed)!

[simeon1964]

11 minutes ago, BazzaS said:

I think the problem is you don’t accept that the expert thinks you are entitled to only £1,000 (not the £17,000 you now

Yes, I do not accept £1000.00. I have paid invoice billing for almost £4,000.00 after the builder walked away and estimated bill do the remainder of the work for over 12k 

[BazzaS]

Who do you think the judge will find more persuasive?

 

You, who seems to be pulling figures out of the air, or the (jointly instructed, independent) expert you agreed to.

 

I’m not a chartered surveyor, nor a builder. However I found the expert’s report clear, and can see how a judge would find it persuasive.

The expert notes the questions they have been asked to answer in their instructions.

The expert notes their qualifications and expertise.

The expert lays the report out clearly, answering the points individually.

The expert notes where they haven’t been able to inspect (E.g concealed) work, and states what is their opinion and what their assumptions are.

The expert avoids jargon, or where jargon is essential (such as underpinning vs piling) explains the jargon clearly.

 

Overall the expert’s report gives the impression of an expert well able to give their opinion and express it clearly to the lay person / judge.

 

So, if you think you are owed SUBSTANTIALLY more than £1000, how are you going to persuade the judge you are right and the expert is wrong, against such a persuasive report?

[simeon1964]

5 minutes ago, BazzaS said:

ou, who seems to be pulling figures out of the air

 

I did not pluck figures they were paid for but I see your point. Am I losing this case or could i have gone wrong in agreeing to single expert nominated by the claimant solicitors. 

[BazzaS]

Well, you agreed to that expert, the expert was jointly instructed, and has made it clear that the report is in their honest belief and is their professional opinion, as well as highlighting that the expert is aware their duty is to the court, not one side or the other.

 

Unless you can PROVE the expert has made a mistake, you can’t really complain about their report, and in terms of “could i have gone wrong in agreeing to single expert nominated by the claimant solicitors.”

how else would you expect a court to reach a judgment in a case where the builder and you disagree so wildly on what needs paying for!?

 

You are required to substantiate the sums you are claiming for. You can’t say “I need £17,000 to complete the work” and expect the court to grant you that. It may be that you need £17,000 to complete the work BUT you have to show the court WHY it will take £17,00 and WHY the builder is liable for that £17,000.

 

The expert’s report says the builder owes £1,000 towards any work, not £17,000.

 

Do you still owe the builder anything for the work they have undertaken?

Edited December 22, 2022 by BazzaS

[simeon1964]

4 minutes ago, BazzaS said:

 

 

5 minutes ago, BazzaS said:

The expert’s report says the builder owes £1,000 towards any work,

 

This is. as against me owing £2,580 in his claim. This is where I need help.  which tradesman  can i call in to work in my house for £20, £25, or £150??

[simeon1964]

To certify my boiler, electricity brake the concrete for £100.00 and the rest.

 

[honeybee13]

3 minutes ago, simeon1964 said:

 

 

This is. as against me owing £2,580 in his claim. This is where I need help.  which tradesman  can i call in to work in my house for £20, £25, or £150??

 

Is that the builder's claim? If it is, why is he putting in a claim saying he owes you money?

 

HB

[simeon1964]

2 minutes ago, honeybee13 said:

Is that the builder's claim? If it is, why is h

Yes, that was the builder original claim to which I counterclaimed 16k+ for unfinished and damaged to property

[BazzaS]

Make sure you show any prospective builders the court documents and the expert’s report, so they know how much you are willing to pay when you ask them for a quote …….

 

They can then decide if the job is worth it to them, and what sort of client you are likely to be.

This should lead to no mismatch of expectations, reducing the risk of further litigation arising…….

[simeon1964]

This is not realistic, will never get any work done in that way. I had failed boiler less than a week ago the engineer came to sort it out and was bill £150 for less than 10minutes job.

 

I am completely don't know what to do and where to run now.

[BazzaS]

Well, expect the court to find in favour of builder for the sum claimed by them, LESS the £1000 the expert believes you are entitled.

 

I’d expect the court to award costs “in the case”, so, to the claimant (the builder), as well as interest based on the amount awarded.

 

You don’t have to get different builders in to do the work for £50 here and £100 there for each small job. Get them to give you one quote in total.

 

 

Edited December 22, 2022 by BazzaS

[FTMDave]

@BazzaS @honeybee13  This whole saga started when the builder sued Simeon, and Simeon counterclaimed.  The builder lost his part of the case and failed to get judgement set aside.  So no, Simeon doesn't owe the builder anything.

 

It is Simeon's counterclaim that is ongoing.

 

This is brilliant work by Bazza this morning to explain everything so clearly.

 

We have asked Simeon three times to upload his WS, to see if the £17,000 figure is backed up properly.  But for some reason he wants to hide this document.

[simeon1964]

You already have my counterclaim most of it in the Expert report.

Fast forward what question should i be asking while I search for the counterclaim

[Manxman in exile]

You don't need to search for the counterclaim.  @FTMDave and I drafted it based on what you told us and it's at #133.

 

What you were asked to post is a copy of your Witness Statement.  That will introduce the evidence that you submitted to the court in support of your £17000 counterclaim...

 

[FTMDave]

 I believe the Witness Statement was filed with the court on 21 October.  We have never seen it.

[Manxman in exile]

I'd also like to see what instructions the two parties gave to the expert they jointly appointed.

 

@simeon1964 needs to confirm whether those instructions (which he must have agreed to) actually addressed all of the issues contained in the schedule of loss in his particulars of claim.  Has anything not been covered?

 

When helping simeon draft the particulars @FTMDave and I relied* on simeon's assurance that he had evidence (quotes and estimates etc) supporting a claimof £17k.  It would seem the independent expert either disagrees massively with those costings, or his instructions didn't cover all the heads of loss...

 

*To the best of my recollection.  It was almost a year ago now

Edited December 22, 2022 by Manxman in exile

[simeon1964]

Witness statement . Sure I sent this in before in word format, and and Mansman in exile had a bit of input.

 

CCFE WS1022CAG.pdf

[Manxman in exile]

 

No.  If you mean me I had no input whatsoever to that witness statement.  Although it looks as though at least some of it is based on the detailed Particulars of Claim that FTMDave and I helped you draft in January...

 

On 21/12/2022 at 23:31, simeon1964 said:

 

I now need to ask Questions: Here is expert report Part1 and Part2 follows:

I now need to ask Questions: Here is expert report Part2 continuation:

 

shedule of photographs .pdf 954.8 kB · 9 downloads

 

Just looking at this again I'm totally confused.  You say "... Here is expert report Part 1 and Part 2 follows:... " and then you leave a blank space followed by "... Here is expert report Part 2 continuation:... " and you post a pdf document entitled schedule of photographs (which, incidentally, contains no photographs!).

 

So is the expert report in one part or two parts?  You've only posted one document.  And if the document called schedule of photographs is the expert report, why the hell isn't it called Expert Report????