Are you Helping your Project Managers and Superintendents Understand your Contract?
The bidding and contract process is often totally separate from the jobsite environment. This can make it difficult for project managers and superintendents to keep track of key contract provisions, especially when the contract form in question is new to them. Since field personnel are busy with the work, and are under a lot of time pressure, they aren’t always as familiar with the contract as you would like for them to be.
One of our answers to this problem is a contract review checklist/summary. This is a simple and easy-to-understand template that contractors can use to boil the contract into a couple of pages, and can be easily retained and reviewed on the job site. It also provides a vital checklist when clients are reviewing the contract with their construction counsel.
The checklist prompts clients to record key information such as:
Andy Goldsmith, Jr.
-proper contact information and means of communicating official notices;
-whether the project is lienable;
-bond information, including trigger events and notice requirements;
-information relating to periodic payments and prerequisites to final payment;
-key scheduling milestones and information relating to incentives and delays;
procedures and documentation requirements for change orders and making claims;
-default provisions;
-insurance requirements;
-mandatory flow-thru provisions; and
-special legal considerations.
The contract review checklist and summary are available here.
This checklist is a great tool for spotting items of concern during the estimating phase, which can then be addressed in the bid and/or during contract negotiations. The form then serves as an easy point of reference for the project manager and superintendent when issues come up during the life of the project.
Andy Goldsmith, Jr. is an attorney with Elmore Goldsmith, a nationally recognized law firm in the construction industry. The firm represents clients throughout the Carolinas in all aspects of construction matters. Read more construction law-oriented blog posts by the attorneys at their Hard Hat Blog.
