ARCHITECTS OF THEIR OWN DOWNFALL

摘要

In the absence of any agreement over fees, how should a proper fee for an architect be assessed? What if its services have fallen far short of the standards expected? And how far can an architect go to recover those fees? A recent case (Michael Phillips Architects Ltd v Riklin) dealt with just these issues in a situation where no appointment document had been signed between the architect and the client, nor was there any agreement on fees. The project was the renovation and refurbishment of a residential listed building in Hampshire. The Riklins were people with no experience of construction projects, and expected their architect to provide a full set of services for the project.