Facilities Manager's Desk Reference, 3rd Edition

15Legislation

15.1 Introduction

FMs (facilities managers, or facilities management) have many regulations and much legislation to know and understand if they are to be competent in the discharge of their duties.

FMs need to look after the well‐being of the visitors, employees and contractors working in their buildings and facilities, provide a safe place of work with safe equipment, and mitigate the risks of loss of productivity, prosecution, litigation and claims. It has been suggested that FMs need to be aware of up to 400 legal rules that are to be found in various Acts of Parliament, statutes, regulations, orders, by‐laws, Approved Codes of Practice and guidance notes. For FMs with European and international property portfolios, an appreciation of the relevant local laws is also required.

15.2 UK legal system

The UK legal system has a long history. Although not based on a written constitution, it is based on the separate powers of:

• The legislature or rules made by Parliament.
• The executive agencies, departments and public bodies acting on behalf of the government.
• The judiciary system, which comprises a range of courts and tribunals that check everyone acts within the law laid down by legislature.

In the UK, there is common law (based on judges’ decisions over many years) and statute law (based on parliamentary decisions). The main types of law can also be classified as shown in Table 15.1.

The legal justice system is based on a hierarchy of courts, as depicted in ...