Construction Contract Claims and Methods of Avoiding Contract Litigation through Dispute Resolution Alternatives

In recent years, construction contract claims have grown at an alarming rate. It has become increasingly more difficult for contracting parties to achieve bilateral agreements in an equitable, effective and timely manner 6. Litigating disputes is being abused as a cure-all means within the construction industry, generating a disproportionate growth in court cases. Relaying on the legal system to judge and resolve a contractual problem is counterproductive to getting the job done. It is also an extremely time consuming and expensive undertaking for all parties. Therefore, it behooves every contracting party to strive for timely completion of the work. Resolving differences in-house when possible and avoiding litigation at all cost is a worthwhile endeavor. This can be accomplished through cooperation, meaningful, open-minded negotiations and a team approach to managing the contract execution. The purpose of this research paper is to investigate the reasons behind the increasing trend toward adversarial contract relationships and claims. It also looks at possible disputes resolution techniques that can be used to short circuit the costly and exhaustive path to litigation.