FIDIC Claims and Disputes Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Contract Managers, Project Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 9 Nov 2026 Course code SD-CM-088

Before you join: Participants should have practical exposure to construction, engineering or infrastructure contracts and understand basic contract documents, project correspondence, payment processes and programme reporting.

Dates & prices

Two start dates a month in every city, and live online on weekdays or weekends. Fees are per participant; classroom fees include tuition, materials, lunch and refreshments, and the certificate.

Suggest a date or city

Showing the next six months. Later dates, other cities and private deliveries for your team are available on request.

Course overview

FIDIC contracts provide structured routes for notices, claims, determinations and disputes, but outcomes often depend on disciplined contract administration from the first indication of a problem. Missed notice deadlines, weak site records, poorly defined delay analysis and unsupported cost calculations can turn a manageable event into a disputed commercial exposure. Project teams need to identify entitlement early, preserve evidence and present claims in the form required by the contract.

This course examines claims and disputes under the FIDIC 1999 and 2017 contract forms, with emphasis on the Red Book and relevant comparisons with Yellow and Silver Book risk allocation. Participants examine notice requirements, time bars, Engineer determinations, extension-of-time analysis, prolongation and disruption costs, claim preparation, DAAB procedures, amicable settlement and arbitration. They learn to connect contractual clauses, factual evidence, programme analysis and quantum into defensible claim submissions.

Teaching combines focused briefings with construction and infrastructure case work, claim-document reviews, group analysis, negotiation simulations and dispute-procedure planning. Participants work with realistic records including correspondence, schedules, site diaries, payment data and draft claim material. Each participant leaves with a reusable FIDIC claim preparation pack, including a notice checklist, entitlement matrix, evidence register, claim chronology and dispute escalation plan. A certificate of completion is issued to participants who complete the course.

The course is suited to professionals administering FIDIC-based construction, engineering, energy, transport, water and major capital projects. It is particularly valuable where teams must protect contractual rights while maintaining workable relationships between Employers, Contractors, Engineers and subcontractors.

What you will be able to do

  • Interpret FIDIC 1999 and 2017 claim and dispute procedures
  • Draft contractual notices that preserve claim rights and meet time bars
  • Build entitlement matrices linking clauses, facts, evidence and remedies
  • Assess delay using critical path, time impact and windows analysis
  • Prepare extension-of-time and cost claim submissions with supporting records
  • Quantify prolongation, disruption and acceleration costs using recognised methods
  • Manage Engineer determinations, DAAB referrals and Notices of Dissatisfaction
  • Plan negotiation, settlement and arbitration actions for disputed claims

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Greater confidence identifying claim events before contractual deadlines expire
  • Stronger ability to challenge unsupported claims using contractual and factual analysis
  • Practical methods for presenting delay and cost submissions credibly
  • Clearer understanding of Engineer, DAAB and arbitration procedural stages
  • Reusable templates for managing live claims on current projects

For your organisation

  • Fewer lost entitlements caused by late notices and incomplete particulars
  • Better quality claim submissions supported by traceable project records
  • Earlier resolution of commercial issues through structured Engineer consultations
  • More consistent treatment of delay, disruption and prolongation cost claims
  • Reduced dispute exposure through planned DAAB, settlement and arbitration actions

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can locate the contractual provisions governing claims, determinations and disputes under key FIDIC forms.

  • FIDIC contract family, risk allocation, and document hierarchy compared
  • 1999 and 2017 Red Book claim pathways distinguished
  • Yellow and Silver Book risk positions assessed
  • Particular Conditions checked against General Conditions and governing law
  • Employer, Contractor, Engineer, and DAAB decision roles mapped
  • Contract data, definitions, and priority clauses located quickly

Participants can issue and manage notices that preserve contractual rights after claim events arise.

  • Notice deadlines calculated from contractual awareness and stated event dates
  • Clause 20 notice requirements contrasted between 1999 and 2017
  • Early warning, contemporaneous records, and mitigation duties connected
  • Notice letters drafted with reservation of rights language
  • Time bars tested against contract wording and applicable law
  • Formal communications registers maintained for claim-critical project correspondence

Participants can establish whether a project event gives rise to time, money or other contractual relief.

  • Cause-and-effect analysis links contractual events to claimed consequences
  • Variation, unforeseeable conditions, and Employer risk events classified
  • Engineer instructions tested for valid variation status
  • Concurrent Contractor risk events separated from compensable delay
  • Entitlement matrices connect clauses, facts, notices, and records
  • Mitigation evidence assessed against reasonable steps and contractual duties

Participants can select and explain suitable delay analysis methods for FIDIC extension-of-time claims.

  • Critical path method schedules interpreted for extension-of-time analysis
  • Impacted as-planned analysis applied to prospective delay events
  • Time impact analysis tested using contemporaneous schedule updates
  • Windows analysis distinguishes delay responsibility over defined periods
  • Concurrency assessed under contract wording and applicable legal principles
  • Extension-of-time submissions connect delay, criticality, and completion dates

Participants can prepare traceable calculations for common heads of claim under FIDIC contracts.

  • Prolongation cost heads separated from disruption and acceleration costs
  • Measured mile method calculates productivity loss from reliable comparators
  • Resource records reconcile labour, plant, materials, and site overheads
  • Head office overhead formulas tested against contractual recovery bases
  • Quantum schedules trace claimed amounts to source documents
  • Interest, financing charges, and currency provisions checked carefully

Participants can assemble a properly structured claim submission supported by relevant project records.

  • Claim narrative structure aligns facts, clauses, causation, and quantum
  • Contemporaneous records indexed through a claim document register
  • Chronologies distinguish event dates, knowledge dates, and notice dates
  • Particulars submissions meet contractual content and timing requirements
  • Legal privilege and without-prejudice communications handled appropriately during disputes
  • Claim review checklists test completeness before formal submission

Participants can prepare for and respond to Engineer consultations and contractual determinations.

  • Engineer consultations prepared with position papers and evidence bundles
  • 1999 Clause 3.5 determinations compared with 2017 Clause 3.7
  • Good-faith consultation requirements distinguished from determination procedures under FIDIC forms
  • Reasoned determinations tested against contract, facts, and submissions
  • Partial agreements recorded without waiving unresolved claim elements
  • Engineer neutrality, authority limits, and procedural fairness examined

Participants can use DAAB procedures to address disputes while preserving contractual positions.

  • Dispute avoidance techniques identify issues before positions become entrenched
  • Standing DAAB appointment, agreements, and referral rules reviewed
  • Referral documents frame questions, relief, facts, and contractual grounds
  • DAAB procedure distinguishes informal assistance from formal decisions
  • Binding decisions implemented while preserving rights of dissatisfaction
  • Notice of Dissatisfaction deadlines and consequences calculated accurately

Participants can plan negotiation, settlement and arbitration steps after formal dispute escalation.

  • Negotiation strategy uses BATNA, authority limits, and settlement ranges
  • Amicable settlement periods managed without losing procedural rights
  • Arbitration clauses checked for seat, rules, language, and tribunal
  • ICC Arbitration Rules stages mapped from request through award
  • Expert evidence, document production, and witness preparation planned
  • Settlement agreements address releases, payment, confidentiality, and tax

Participants can establish practical controls for managing live claims and dispute risks on active projects.

  • Claim risk registers rank live events by notice, evidence, and value
  • Monthly claim reviews assign owners, deadlines, and escalation actions
  • Dashboard metrics track notices, particulars, determinations, and disputes
  • File handover protocols preserve records when project personnel change
  • Lessons-learned reviews convert recurring disputes into contract administration controls
  • Personal application plans set actions for current contract portfolios

Exercises and examples are adapted to each cohort's sectors and roles.

What you take back to work

  1. FIDIC claim notice checklist
  2. Contractual entitlement matrix
  3. Claim evidence register
  4. Extension-of-time analysis guide
  5. Claim submission structure template
  6. Dispute escalation plan

Who should attend

  • Contract Managers — need to protect contractual rights and control claim procedures
  • Project Managers — need to manage events before they become formal disputes
  • Commercial Managers — need to assess entitlement, quantum and settlement positions
  • Quantity Surveyors — need to prepare substantiated cost and prolongation claims
  • Planning Engineers — need to present schedule evidence for extension-of-time claims
  • Engineers and Employer Representatives — need to administer determinations fairly and correctly

Skills and tools covered

FIDIC claim administrationContractual notice draftingDelay analysisClaim quantum assessmentDAAB procedure managementDispute resolution planning

Tools and standards

FIDIC Red Book 1999, FIDIC Red Book 2017, SCL Delay and Disruption Protocol, ICC Arbitration Rules

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to explain FIDIC clauses, procedures and claim principles, followed by case-based analysis of project events and records. Participants review notices, correspondence, programmes, cost data and draft submissions drawn from realistic capital-project scenarios. Group work develops entitlement positions, delay analyses and quantum schedules. Simulations cover Engineer consultations, DAAB referrals and settlement discussions. Individual application planning helps participants adapt the methods, templates and controls to their active contracts.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have practical exposure to construction, engineering or infrastructure contracts and understand basic contract documents, project correspondence, payment processes and programme reporting. Familiarity with at least one FIDIC contract form is helpful, particularly the Red Book, but detailed prior knowledge of FIDIC clause numbering is not required. Participants should be comfortable reading contractual clauses and reviewing project records such as notices, schedules, site diaries and cost reports. Legal qualifications, formal claims experience, arbitration experience and advanced planning software skills are not required.

A typical training day

08:30 – 10:30First session
10:30 – 10:45Refreshment break
10:45 – 12:30Second session
12:30 – 13:30Lunch and networking
13:30 – 15:00Third session
15:00 – 15:15Refreshment break
15:15 – 16:30Workshop and daily review

Live online deliveries follow the same structure in East Africa Time, with shorter screen blocks and longer breaks.

What the fee includes

  • Instruction by a practitioner facilitator
  • Full course workbook and materials
  • Exercise files, templates and case studies
  • Refreshments and lunch on classroom deliveries
  • Certificate of completion
  • Post-course application plan

Frequently asked questions

Participants should understand basic construction or engineering contract administration and be able to read project correspondence and schedules. Prior detailed knowledge of FIDIC clauses, legal qualifications and arbitration experience are not required.

Participants may bring a copy of the FIDIC contract form used on their projects, subject to employer confidentiality requirements. A laptop is useful for reviewing templates and working with claim records, but is not mandatory for classroom attendance.

The course is designed for contract, commercial, project, planning and engineering professionals working on FIDIC-based projects. It also suits Employer representatives who review claims or support Engineer determinations.

A general FIDIC course usually examines contract structure, procurement and routine administration across many clauses. This course concentrates on the procedures, evidence, analysis and decisions required when claims and disputes arise.

Participants can use the notice checklist, entitlement matrix and evidence register immediately on live project events. The course also provides a practical sequence for preparing claims, responding to determinations and escalating disputes when necessary.

The five-day programme runs from 08:30 to 16:30 each day, providing about 6.5 contact hours daily. Time is divided between clause briefings, case analysis, document reviews, group work, simulations and application planning.

Questions about this course?

Ask about dates, fees, group bookings or running it for your team. Our training team replies by email.

Ask on WhatsApp info@skillsetdevelopment.com

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