Andrew Archer

Full Profile

Andrew was called to the Victorian Bar, Melbourne in 2005 where he practised exclusively in construction disputes working on some of Australia's largest arbitrations and court proceedings.

Since joining Clyde & Co’s construction team in 2021 Andrew has appeared as counsel in Dispute Adjudication Board proceedings along with handling heavyweight arbitrations arising from giga projects in Saudi Arabia.

Andrew holds law degrees from English and Australian universities and is recognised for his academic writings on technical construction law topics. His published works are cited in Keating on Construction Contracts and Bailey’s 3 volume work Construction Law.  Andrew has received two Commendations in the prestigious UK Society of Construction Law Hudson Prize, a High Commendation in the Australian Society of Construction Law Brooking Prize and is a previous winner of the Australian Building Disputes Practitioners’ Society annual essay competition.

Andrew regularly presents at industry events and talks including Dubai Arbitration Week and the (inaugural) Riyadh International Disputes Week. 

Experience

• Acting as internal counsel in respect of an EPC contract dispute in Saudi Arabia. The matter involves complex issues of EOT claims, delay damages, variations and defects. Work includes preparation for DAB proceedings and Saudi arbitration (ongoing).  
• Acting as internal counsel in respect of a further contract dispute in Saudi Arabia.  The matter involves contested termination, EOT claims, variations, and defects.  Work includes preparation for DAB proceedings and LCIA arbitration (ongoing). 
• International arbitration concerning the Basslink cable project (project value A$ 800m).  The dispute concerned contractual interpretation issues arising from the project documents.
• International arbitration concerning a dispute over the termination of a time charter for an FPSO (floating production and storage offloading) vessel, Puffin oil field, Timor Sea (dispute value US$ 79m).
• McConnell Dowell - Minerva gas fields (project value US$ 137m).  Acknowledged as the largest infrastructure litigation ever in an Australian court and running over 6 years, the litigation involved a multitude of parties and claims.
• Brambles’ Newcastle coal ports redevelopment (project value A$ 500m).  Claims concerning novel conceptual civil engineering designs for a third coal port in Newcastle, NSW – at the time the largest coal port in the world.  
• BHP’s Olympic Dam Expansion project (project value A$28b).  Claims concerning the design of a tank lining system forming part of a copper and uranium solvent extraction plant at BHP’s Olympic Dam mine. 
• Royal Adelaide Hospital (project value A$1.85b) – a PPP with the South Australian government.  Claims concerning contractual claims for time and money involving the remediation of a contaminated site. 
• Melbourne Convention Centre – (project value A$1.4b).  Claims concerning post contractual changes to functional specifications in a design and construct procurement. 

Publications

• "Professional indemnity insurance reforms in Victoria" BDPS Newsletter Issue 162 June 2020.
• "Force majeure regimes – predicting the unpredictable" ACLN 191 March/April 2020.
• "Global Claim – Global Confusion?" (2017) 33 BCL 111.
• "Contractual termination rights and the concurrent exercise or non-exercise of common law termination rights - caught between the Scylla and Charybdis?" (2017) 33 Const. L.J. 313.
• Author of the Australian Lexis Nexis loose leaf services "Compromise of Proceedings (Victoria)" and "Order 50 - References and Inquiries (Victoria)".