Time Delay Disputes in Construction Contracts - Assignment Example

Internal environments usually consist of scheduling issues; i.e. if the construction process was poorly scheduled. Additionally, it may comprise of certain financial problems or changed orders. Exogenous factors largely consist of external elements such poor weather or government laws and regulations. Inputs factors that may lead to delays in construction are largely related to the issue of manpower shortage. (Sweis, 2008) In other words, delays may either be non excusable or excusable. For instance, when a delay is caused by labour disputes, unusual deliveries, and transportation deals that had not been foreseen or other causes that could not be predicted, then the affected party can consider forgiving the offending party.

However, in other instances, then delays cannot be excused by the offending party. For example, when delays occurred during ordinary weather or when the subcontractor failed to meet his/her end of the bargain. It is also inexcusable to delay a construction if the project site was poorly coordinated. This may also be a problem when the contractor fails to finance the project properly or when there was poor workmanship, delays in material acquisition among others things. When a delay is caused by any of the latter factors, then it is likely that that person found guilty of the offense will be liable to pay damages.

(Fewings & Jones, 2005) The first aspect that is involved in dealing with the disputes is mitigation of its effect. It is likely that the construction process may still be underway. Consequently, the affected parties have to look for ways in which they can minimise the distractions that would lead to further delay or that would cause ultimate project failure. (Kamara, 2002)The next thing that needs to be done is to determine the root cause of the problem. One must be able to determine whether the causes of these delays are actually excusable or not.

This is usually done by conducting a detailed evaluation and analysis of the construction site, the contractors, the subcontractor, workers, materials and all other interests groups required to make the project complete. It is usually plausible to break down all the disputes involved in the process little by little. This is because certain events may have caused different delays. Additionally, to effectively solve disputes, it is necessary to assess the overall liability involved and the actual damage caused to the affected party.

Thereafter, the two parties in the construction process are usually required to take part in a settlement agreement. This will require legal consultants who will be able to voice the concerns of each of the affected parties. At that time, it may be also be necessary to consider the legal representatives for each party as there is a whole team involved in the dispute resolution mechanisms. The assembly of this team may usually be necessary in mediation cases rather than in settlement arrangements.

(Iyer, Chaphalkar & Joshi, 2008)However, in the event that a dispute is quite severe or when the affected parties have failed to reach a compromise, then these two parties will be required to take their case to court. This usually occurs when the dispute has resulted in litigation in the part of the affected party. Usually, judges will listen to their respective cases and then come up with possible explanations about what could have caused