Chris Hough’s career combines hands-on engineering with specialist construction law. This page distinguishes experience gained at HQ Law from earlier roles, so prospective clients can see the background behind the advice without implying that another firm’s matters were HQ Law matters.
Since establishing his own specialist practice in 2004 (operating as HQ Law Limited since 2016), Chris has advised contractors, subcontractors, hoteliers, property developers and private clients on contentious and non-contentious construction and engineering matters.
Construction and engineering disputes involving payment, valuation, variations, final accounts, delay, defects and contractual rights.
Project disputes where commercial objectives, programme, technical evidence and contract administration need to be considered together.
Party work alongside Chris’s separate decision-maker experience as an adjudicator, including decisions in disputes valued at more than £10 million.
Recovering construction and commercial debts through adjudication, statutory demands and winding-up petitions, including work for insolvency practitioners.
The examples below are Chris Hough’s personal career experience from earlier firms and are not presented as HQ Law matters.
As an associate, Chris supervised four arbitrations concerning alleged defects in dry docks and port facilities for Dubai Drydocks and Dubai Ports Authority against major UK contractors and consulting engineers.
Construction-industry disputes for major clients and contractors, including claims stated in his CV as being up to £5.5 million in value in the High Court and in arbitration in the UK and overseas.
Advice on contractual documentation for a light rail transit system while working as a senior construction solicitor.
Road and bridge construction on the M25, reinforced concrete and structural work in South Africa, design engineering and client-side development work in Qatar.
Chris’s CV records experience involving hotels, offices, hospitals, residential buildings, oil platforms, motorways, heavy lifting platforms, tunnels, ports, dry docks, transport infrastructure and oil transportation/loading facilities.
The examples below are deliberately high-level and anonymised. They draw on Chris Hough's career record and do not disclose confidential client information.
High Court, arbitration and adjudication work involving payment, valuation, final accounts, variations, delay, disruption, defects, termination and professional negligence.
Hotels, offices, hospitals, residential schemes, roads and motorways, tunnels, ports and dry docks, oil and gas facilities, heavy-lifting platforms and transport infrastructure.
Construction and engineering matters in the UK and internationally, including the Middle East, Malaysia, Sudan, South Africa and Argentina.
Career experience includes supervising major international arbitrations concerning defects in dry docks and port facilities, as well as UK construction claims and arbitration work.
Construction contract drafting, amendment and review, including project documentation and contractual risk allocation before disputes arise.
Chris has acted as adjudicator in disputes ranging from modest values to matters exceeding £10 million, alongside party-side construction dispute work through his legal career.
For published court decisions involving Chris as adjudicator or C J Hough & Co/HQ Law as solicitors, see Reported matters.
Send the party names, contract type, dispute value and immediate deadline so HQ Law can carry out an initial conflict check.
