Classification of Contract-Related Documentation for Evidentiary Purposes in Construction Claims and Disputes Resolutions

The administration and tracking of construction claims and disputes involve the reference to and generation of a large volume of contract and contract-related documentation. To this end, as the set of contract documents is established and agreed to at the time of contract execution by the parties, another set constituting additional documentation is dynamically generated as claims are substantiated and potentially evolve into disputes. This paper addresses the worth of such agreed or generated evidentiary documentation and presents a schematic framework for their classification. The adopted methodology included a review of the literature related to construction documentation and the requirements for generating evidence in defending claims and disputes. It further involved the identification of factors deemed instrumental for characterizing such evidential material, through scrutinizing the full claim and dispute documentation on two building projects spanning over a period of more than eight years. The factors accounted for in the formulation of the proposed classification framework include, among others: the degree of ownership by each of the parties in respect of a document in question, the degree of agreement as to the content of any such document, the degree of confidentiality assigned to or imparted upon a concerned document. The offered classification can be useful when relying on any relevant documentation in weighing on the matters of facts related to the claims or disputes on hand. As such, the work outcome can be of value for the analyses conducted and reasoning developed in support of the determinations or decisions to be arrived at by disputes resolution analysts and decision makers.