Hugh Saunders

Contact details

VAT number: 176420606

ICO number: ZA033606

Clerk: James Barrass

+442078222047

Hugh is recognised as a leading barrister in construction, engineering and technology matters and in the related areas of professional liability, property damage and insurance. He acts in significant, heavyweight litigation, arbitrations and adjudications in these fields.

Hugh is a confident and persuasive advocate on paper and in court – Legal 500 commented that he “… is outstanding. As an advocate, he is masterful on his feet. As an expert in the field of construction, his knowledge of the law and ability to master the technical issues in a case is second-to-none. He always goes the extra mile”. He regularly appears before the High Court (particularly in the TCC) and has extensive experience in adjudications (including enforcements in the High Court) and in domestic and international arbitration. Hugh has acted for clients around the world, including in the Caribbean, China, Europe, Kazakhstan, South Africa, Turkey and throughout the Arabian Peninsula, on matters arising in the UK and within their own jurisdictions.

Hugh is ranked in Band 1 by Chambers & Partners for Construction and was nominated for Construction Junior of the Year in 2024. Chambers & Partners also rank Hugh as a leading junior for Construction: Professional Negligence and Property Damage. Legal 500 rank Hugh as a leading junior in Construction. Lexology (formerly Who’s Who Legal) ranks Hugh as a “Future Leader” in the field of construction.

Hugh is the co-author (with Ben Patten KC) of Professional Negligence in Construction (2^nd edition, Informa). He is a member of TECBAR (having served on the committee between 2014 and 2018 and again since 2022), the SCL, the Adjudication Society (and a former editor of the Society’s newsletter), the PNBA and the BILA. Hugh is also a former editor of the RICS iSurv materials on Contract Administration.

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Areas of expertise

Hugh is ranked in Band 1 for Construction by Chambers & Partners and was shortlisted for their Construction Junior of the Year award in 2024. With almost 20 years of experience in construction and engineering matters, he is one of the leading juniors at the Construction Bar. He has acted for parties in every sector of the construction industry – employers, contractors, professionals, developers, financial institutions and insurers, and his cases range from infrastructure and energy projects to residential properties, taking in projects of all sizes and types in-between. Hugh is familiar with all the major standard forms of contract.

Hugh most frequently appears in the TCC, where he is usually appointed as sole or leading counsel in complex, high-value litigation with significant technical issues, and he is also instructed in arbitrations and adjudications. He often appears against Silks or teams of juniors.

“Hugh is outstanding. As an advocate, he is masterful on his feet. As an expert in the field of construction, his knowledge of the law and ability to master the technical issues in a case is second-to-none. He always goes the extra mile.” – Legal 500

“He provides clear and commercial advice, which instils confidence in the clients. He is technically excellent, and his drafting is well crafted.” – Chambers & Partners

“A class act, great on his feet” – Legal 500

“Hugh is always a pleasure to work with.” – Chambers & Partners

“Hugh is a very good counsel. He’s careful and meticulous on the detail and exploits important details well.” – Chambers & Partners

Hugh’s recent experience includes:

Acting for the respondent in Construtora OAS SA v National Infrastructure Development Company Limited (led by Anneliese Day KC, Jason Mootoo SC and Ben Patten KC), a £570m claim arising out of the disputed termination of a FIDIC Yellow Book contract for the design and construction of a new highway in Trinidad. Over the 10 years that Hugh has been involved, the case has involved contested calls on performance securities before the High Court (National Infrastructure Development Company Limited v BNP Paribas [2016] EWHC 2508 (Comm)) and the Court of Appeal (National Infrastructure Development Company Limited v Banco Santander SA [2017] EWCA Civ 27); an arbitration under LCIA rules before John Fellas, Adam Constable KC (now Mr Justice Constable) and Andrew White KC; and proceedings in the High Court and Court of Appeal of Trinidad and Tobago, where NIDCO successfully applied to have the Tribunal’s award set aside. Hugh was called to the Bar of Trinidad and Tobago for this case and appeared at first instance and on appeal.

Acting for the claimant M&E contractor (led by David Streatfeild-James KC), a £7m claim in the High Court arising out of the installation of a life-safety systems generator in the Shard Place development next to the Shard in London.

Acting for the defendant sub-contractor in a £14m claim in the High Court relating to the installation of the roof for a new manufacturing facility for carbon-fibre blades for wind turbines.

Led by Anneliese Day KC and Ben Patten KC, acting for the claimant contractor in a multi-million pound extension of time claim arising out of the refurbishment of the Lanesborough Hotel in London.

Acting for the claimant sub-contractor in a £1m claim in the High Court relating to defects in stone tiling caused by defective adhesive.

Acting for the claimant contractor in a claim against its sub-contractor for defective design and construction of a pallet conveyor system in a distribution centre. The claim is before the High Court.

Advising insurers on subrogated claims valued at over £5m against a landlord and its managing agent following a catastrophic flood to hotel premises.

Acting for the claimant manufacturer in a £1m claim before the High Court arising out of defective products caused by the supply of contaminated materials.

Acting for the claimant homeowners in a High Court claim against a contractor who repudiated their contract: Struthers v Alastair Davies t/a Alastair Davies Building [2022] EWHC 333 (TCC).

Acting for the claimant in a High Court claim against an electrical sub-contractor arising out of the defective installation of replacement parts into a busbar system for an office block which resulted in an explosion and the destruction of the busbar.

Acting for the University of Manchester in a £1.2m High Court claim against its design and build contractor arising out of the design of acid scrubbers for the National Graphene Centre.

Extensive experience in relation to performance securities. Hugh has advised employers, local authorities and contractors on making and resisting calls on bonds and letters of credit.

Advising an employer in relation to a domestic final account arbitration against its contractor, which included disputes about appointment of the tribunal, jurisdiction and limitation, in addition to the substance of the case.

Acting for the defendant architect (against teams led by Silks) in HBGL v Balfour Beatty and Broadway Malyan. This was a £43m claim arising out of alleged fire safety defects in the external wall construction and in the internal design and construction of student accommodation in East London, including in relation to unusual details such as the design of the deflection heads.

Acting for the claimant homeowners in a £2m High Court claim against their architect (and contractor) in relation to defects and delays in the construction of a new luxury home. In addition to allegations of negligent design and project management, the claim also concerned unusual allegations as to the architect’s conflict of interest with the contractor, and failure properly to document its appointment and the project brief.

Acting for the defendant architect in a claim arising out of allegations of water ingress and inadequate design of the iconic Selfridges façade at the Bullring in Birmingham (led by Fiona Sinclair KC).

Acting for the claimant contractor against its engineering consultant in a £1m claim about the negligent design of water management for bridge abutments forming part of a road improvement works.

Acting for the homeowner in relation to claims against its M&E engineer arising out of the defective design of the environmental systems for a new £40m luxury home.

Acting in High Court proceedings for the claimant employer in a £2m claim against its structural engineer in relation to the collapse of a hopper.

Acting for the defendant architect in a £1m claim by a developer relating to the renovation of listed farmhouses.

Acting for the claimant homeowner in a £1m claim against the designer of structural glass extensions to their home, including what was believed to be the largest domestic structural glass project in the UK at the time.

Advising the defendant firm of solicitors in a claim where the individual solicitor had (without the firm’s knowledge) failed to issue a claim against a contractor before the expiry of limitation and proceeded then to mislead the client about that fact. Hugh advised on the prospects of the underlying construction claim to assist the firm in understanding its exposure.

Acting for the defendant civil engineer in relation to a claim of negligent design of the surface water drainage for a new housing development.

Hugh has been instructed in numerous cases where fire safety and/or other building safety matters have been in issue, including in relation to cladding, compartmentation and structural issues. Some of his recent work includes:

Acting for the defendant architect (against teams led by Silks) in HBGL v Balfour Beatty and Broadway Malyan. This was a £43m claim arising out of alleged fire safety defects in the external wall construction and in the internal design and construction of student accommodation in East London, including in relation to unusual details such as the design of the deflection heads.

Acting for the contractor (led by Ben Patten KC) in a £15m claim by a property developer and hotel operator against a major contractor relating to alleged fire safety defects in the design and construction of a hotel in the City of London. The alleged defects related both to the external wall construction and to issues with the internal fire compartmentation caused by the unusual structural design of the building. Hugh also acted for the contractor in the separate, downstream claim brought by the contractor against the architect.

Acting for the contractor (led by Ben Patten KC) in a claim for Building Liability Orders against a contractor in relation to a residential development in London.

Advising an investment fund as to whether alleged defects in external wall construction of a block of flats were covered by an insolvent contractor’s insurance policy, or were excluded because the defects had not been notified during the relevant policy year and/or did not fall within the scope of the notification that had been made.

Acting for a major UK contractor in relation to claims against its professional team for fire safety defects in the design and construction of student accommodation in West London.

Acting for numerous housing associations in claims against contractors and professionals for defective design and construction of external walls and internal fire safety defects in new-build residential developments across the UK. By their nature, these tend to be tall buildings of more than 18m in height (what would now be considered “higher risk” buildings under the Building Safety Act 2022).

Instructed in a £23m claim by a contractor in relation to widespread fire-safety defects in a housing development in Canterbury. Hugh acted for the drylining contractor (against whom many allegations of defective compartmentation were made), one of 9 defendants in the case.

Instructed by a developer in relation to serious structural issues in a new housing development, where the walls of the houses were inadequately fixed to the structural timber frames. There were also issues with the fire compartmentation in the properties.

Acting for a tenant in relation to the enforcement of a Remediation Order under the Building Safety Act 2022.

Hugh has huge experience in adjudications ranging in scale from months-long PFI disputes to “smash and grab” claims. He has also acted on enforcements in the TCC. A small selection of his recent work includes:

Defending a £6m claim by a developer relating to payment disputes arising out of the developer’s failure to proceed with the procurement of the contractually prescribed modular housing and alleged side-agreements for additional work.

Acting for the claimant contractor against its engineering consultant in a £1m claim about the negligent design of water management for bridge abutments forming part of a road improvement works.

Acting for the defendant developer of affordable housing in a “smash and grab” claim turning on alleged late payment and pay less notices and the validity of the payment applications.

Acting in a series of adjudications relating to extensions of time, practical completion and the final account arising out of a new residential development in central Birmingham.

Acting for an external wall insulation contractor in the enforcement of a series of adjudication decisions (BN Rendering Ltd v Everwarm Ltd [2017] EWHC 2356 (TCC)).

Acting for the claimant contractor in a multi-part adjudication arising out of delays to a major road-building project in Scotland.

Hugh is ranked as a leading junior by Chambers & Partners in the field of Construction: Professional Negligence. He has vast experience in claims against construction professionals of all kinds including architects, engineers, surveyors and other construction professionals. He also acts in claims against solicitors where the underlying allegations relate to construction matters.

“He’s really good and very impressive.” – Chambers & Partners

“Hugh is a client-friendly barrister who rolls his sleeves up and gets stuck in to a case, bringing excellent technical advice and commerciality to it.” – Chambers & Partners

“As ever, he provides rock-solid advice, which is both technical and practical. He is an excellent team player.” – Chambers & Partners

Examples of Hugh’s recent cases include:

Acting for the defendant architect (against teams led by Silks) in HBGL v Balfour Beatty and Broadway Malyan. This was a £43m claim arising out of alleged fire safety defects in the external wall construction and in the internal design and construction of student accommodation in East London, including in relation to unusual details such as the design of the deflection heads.

Acting for the claimant homeowners in a £2m High Court claim against their architect (and contractor) in relation to defects and delays in the construction of a new luxury home. In addition to allegations of negligent design and project management, the claim also concerned unusual allegations as to the architect’s conflict of interest with the contractor, and failure properly to document its appointment and the project brief.

Acting for the defendant architect in a claim arising out of allegations of water ingress and inadequate design of the iconic Selfridges façade at the Bullring in Birmingham (led by Fiona Sinclair KC).

Acting for the claimant contractor against its engineering consultant in a £1m claim about the negligent design of water management for bridge abutments forming part of a road improvement works.

Acting for the homeowner in relation to claims against its M&E engineer arising out of the defective design of the environmental systems for a new £40m luxury home.

Acting in High Court proceedings for the claimant employer in a £2m claim against its structural engineer in relation to the collapse of a hopper.

Acting for the defendant architect in a £1m claim by a developer relating to the renovation of listed farmhouses.

Acting for the claimant homeowner in a £1m claim against the designer of structural glass extensions to their home, including what was believed to be the largest domestic structural glass project in the UK at the time.

Advising the defendant firm of solicitors in a claim where the individual solicitor had (without the firm’s knowledge) failed to issue a claim against a contractor before the expiry of limitation and proceeded then to mislead the client about that fact. Hugh advised on the prospects of the underlying construction claim to assist the firm in understanding its exposure.

Acting for the defendant civil engineer in relation to a claim of negligent design of the surface water drainage for a new housing development.

Hugh is ranked as a leading junior by Chambers & Partners in the field of property damage. He has particular expertise in claims involving escapes of water and chemicals, fire damage claims, and claims arising out of construction operations. He also acts in product liability cases where damage has been caused by defective equipment. Hugh is frequently instructed by insurers to advise on coverage issues, or to act in subrogated claims.

“Hugh is excellent – very approachable and easy to work with. He very quickly gets to grips with even complex issues and gives clear commercial advice.” – Chambers & Partners

“He is calm personified and isn’t afraid to get his hands dirty. He is a pleasure to work with and a massive brain.” – Chambers & Partners

“Hugh is very approachable and easy to work with. He is an excellent and very persuasive advocate.” – Chambers & Partners

Examples of Hugh’s recent cases include:

Acting for the defendant contractor in a claim arising out of a roof fire in apartments in central London caused by an escape of hot gases from a flue.

Acting for the defendant scaffolding engineer in a case where the scaffolding suffered a collapse during a winter storm resulting in damage to the building and other property.

Advising the defendant sub-contractor in a claim arising out of a gas explosion which demolished 3 residential properties in London.

Acting for the claimant in a subrogated claim for damage to a block of flats resulting from a fire caused by defects in the electrical wiring of a timer on an immersion heater.

Advising insurers on a coverage issue following a fire in the rectification period caused by the negligent disposal of rags soaked in Danish Oil.

Acting for the claimant in a High Court claim against an electrical sub-contractor arising out of the defective installation of replacement parts into a busbar system for an office block which resulted in an explosion and the destruction of the busbar.

Acting for the University of Manchester in a £1.2m High Court claim against its design and build contractor arising out of the design of acid scrubbers for the National Graphene Centre.

Advising insurers on subrogated claims valued at over £5m against a landlord and its managing agent following a catastrophic flood to hotel premises.

Contact details

h.saunders@4newsquare.com

VAT number: 176420606

ICO number: ZA033606

Clerk: James Barrass

j.barrass@4newsquare.com

+442078222047

Accreditations

Chambers & Partners
“... an intellectual powerhouse, exceptional advocate and superb draftsperson. He is hard-working, straight-talking and clients love him. He is a star of the Construction Bar.”

Chambers & Partners
“As ever, he provides rock-solid advice, which is both technical and practical. He is an excellent team player.”

Chambers & Partners
“Hugh is a client-friendly barrister who rolls his sleeves up and gets stuck in to a case, bringing excellent technical advice and commerciality to it.”

Chambers & Partners
“He provides clear and commercial advice, which instils confidence in the clients. He is technically excellent, and his drafting is well crafted.”

Chambers & Partners
“He is a very sound, reliable pair of hands.”

Chambers & Partners
“Hugh is an expert in the field and will always go the extra half mile for you. ”

Legal 500
“Hugh is extremely hardworking - he definitely goes that extra mile for clients. He is also very user-friendly, and quickly builds rapport with clients. His legal analysis and written work are first-rate.”

Chambers & Partners
“Hugh is very approachable and easy to work with. He is an excellent and very persuasive advocate. ”

Chambers & Partners
“Hugh drafts persuasive documents and is a persuasive advocate. He is a top-tier junior.”

Chambers & Partners
“Hugh is an expert in the field and will always go the extra half mile for you. ”

Chambers & Partners – UK

Construction
Property Damage
Construction: Professional Negligence

Chambers & Partners – Global Guide 2026

Construction

Legal 500

Construction

Hugh is a member of:

TECBAR (The Technology and Construction Bar Association)
The Society of Construction Law
The Adjudication Society
The Professional Negligence Bar Association
COMBAR (The Commercial Bar Association)
The British Insurance Law Association

Hugh served as a committee member of TECBAR between 2014 and 2018. He is a former editor of the Adjudication Society Newsletter.

Hugh is accredited by Gray’s Inn as an advocacy instructor.

Education

LLB Law (First Class), University of Hertfordshire (awarded the A&R Woolf Scholarship for the top First in the year)
BEng Software Engineering, University of Sheffield

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Contact details

Clerk: James Barrass

Areas of expertise

Construction, Energy & Natural Resources

Construction disputes

Claims against construction professionals

Fire and other building safety cases

Adjudication

Professional Liability

Property Damage

Contact details

Clerk: James Barrass

Accreditations

Directory Rankings

Chambers & Partners – UK

Chambers & Partners – Global Guide 2026

Legal 500

Qualifications & Memberships

Related Resources

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