Public Contract Dispute Resolution Training Course

Duration 5 days 10 modules · 33 contact hours
Level Intermediate Certificate on completion
Who attends Public Contract Managers, Procurement Managers and others
Fee from USD 1,100 KSh 95,000 for Kenyan organisations
Where 52 cities + online See dates by city
Next start 16 Nov 2026 Course code SD-CM-146

Before you join: Participants should have experience administering contracts, procurements, projects or supplier relationships and should be familiar with standard contract documents, change requests, payment processes and basic contract terminology.

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

Public contract disputes can delay essential infrastructure, interrupt public services, freeze payments and expose agencies to audit findings, judicial review or supplier claims. They also differ from private-sector disputes: public procurement rules, delegated authority, transparency duties, budget controls and mandatory remedies can affect both the merits of a claim and the choice of forum. Contract managers need to protect legal and commercial positions while maintaining defensible records and workable supplier relationships.

This course develops a structured approach to preventing, assessing and resolving disputes arising after public contract award. Participants examine contract interpretation, notices, change control, payment and time claims, evidence management, dispute escalation, negotiation, mediation, adjudication, dispute boards, arbitration and litigation. They learn to distinguish procurement challenges from contract-performance disputes, analyse entitlement against contract clauses, prepare clear decision memoranda, quantify exposure and select proportionate resolution routes.

Teaching combines focused instructor briefings with public works, technology procurement and service-delivery cases. Participants work through claim records, disputed variations, delay allegations, settlement options and procedural choices in facilitated groups and simulations. They leave with a practical Public Contract Dispute Resolution Toolkit containing reusable registers, checklists, analysis models and an application plan for current contract issues.

The course is suited to professionals managing contracts on behalf of public authorities, state-owned entities, development-funded projects and major suppliers. It is designed for those who need to deal confidently with disputes before they become formal proceedings, while recognising that applicable law, procurement rules and contract terms vary by jurisdiction.

What you will be able to do

  • Analyse public contract disputes using governing law, contract clauses and procurement remedies
  • Prepare claim registers linking events, notices, evidence, ownership and response deadlines
  • Assess contractual entitlement for variations, payment claims and extensions of time
  • Apply critical-path and cause-and-effect methods to delay and disruption allegations
  • Design dispute escalation routes using early warning, negotiation and standing neutrals
  • Prepare negotiation positions using BATNA, settlement ranges and delegated authority limits
  • Select suitable adjudication, arbitration, litigation or administrative review procedures
  • Produce a dispute resolution action plan with evidence, approvals and procedural milestones

Benefits of attending

For you

  • Stronger judgement when deciding whether a disputed event warrants a formal claim
  • Improved ability to draft notices that preserve contractual rights
  • Practical methods for challenging unsupported delay and cost assertions
  • Greater confidence in settlement discussions with suppliers, counsel and senior approvers
  • A reusable structure for preparing dispute briefs and decision memoranda

For your organisation

  • Earlier identification of disputes before positions harden into formal proceedings
  • Better evidence trails for audit, legal review and management decisions
  • More consistent treatment of supplier claims across contracts and project teams
  • Reduced exposure from missed notices, weak records and unauthorised settlements
  • Faster resolution of payment, variation and delay disputes affecting service delivery

Course modules

10 modules over 5 days

Participants can identify the legal, contractual and procedural framework governing a public contract dispute.

  • Public procurement principles: transparency, equal treatment, proportionality, and procedural fairness
  • Distinguishing procurement challenges from post-award contract performance disputes
  • Jurisdiction clauses, governing law, and mandatory public-law constraints
  • Authority matrices and delegated powers affecting valid contract amendments
  • UNCITRAL Model Law remedies and local procurement review mechanisms
  • Mapping dispute forums: review bodies, courts, arbitration, and dispute boards

Participants can interpret key contract provisions and identify risk allocation relevant to disputed events.

  • Order-of-precedence clauses and inconsistencies between specifications, drawings, and schedules
  • Risk allocation matrices for design, ground conditions, inflation, and permits
  • Interpreting notice, time-bar, change-control, and payment certification provisions
  • FIDIC and NEC4 approaches to early warning and compensation events
  • Baseline programmes, milestones, acceptance criteria, and completion definitions
  • Public-sector audit requirements shaping delegated authority and approvals

Participants can establish a defensible claim record from the first disputed event.

  • Claim registers linking event dates, clauses, notices, evidence, and ownership
  • Contemporaneous records: site diaries, meeting minutes, correspondence, and photographs
  • Notice drafting that preserves entitlement without premature admissions or accusations
  • Cause-and-effect analysis separating employer risk from contractor performance
  • Document retention protocols, metadata, version control, and legal holds
  • Privilege boundaries for legal advice, investigations, and settlement communications

Participants can assess entitlement and prepare reasoned positions on common contract claims.

  • Clause-based entitlement analysis using facts, conditions precedent, and remedies
  • Variation valuation methods: rates, quotations, dayworks, and defined cost
  • Extension-of-time analysis using critical path, concurrency, and mitigation evidence
  • Payment disputes involving certification, set-off, interest, and retention
  • Quantum schedules separating direct cost, prolongation, disruption, and overhead
  • Decision memoranda recording authority, rationale, evidence, and approval route

Participants can establish proportionate controls that prevent disputes from becoming formal proceedings.

  • Early-warning registers and risk-reduction meetings under NEC4-style procedures
  • Dispute avoidance boards, standing neutral panels, and project health checks
  • Escalation ladders with issue owners, response deadlines, and decision rights
  • Without-prejudice communications and confidentiality boundaries during settlement discussions
  • Joint fact-finding protocols for technical, valuation, and programme disagreements
  • Conflict mapping of interests, positions, relationships, and public accountability

Participants can prepare and conduct structured settlement discussions within public-sector authority limits.

  • Interest-based negotiation using BATNA, reservation points, and objective criteria
  • Preparation of settlement ranges from merits, quantum, cost, and delay exposure
  • Authority-to-settle matrices for public bodies, auditors, and funding partners
  • Structured mediation statements, opening presentations, caucuses, and term sheets
  • Settlement agreement clauses: releases, confidentiality, payment, tax, and approvals
  • Recording non-monetary remedies, corrective actions, and contract continuation terms

Participants can prepare a dispute for adjudication or referral to a dispute board.

  • Dispute board referral requirements, timetables, submissions, and hearing preparation
  • Adjudication procedures, statutory payment regimes, and temporarily binding decisions
  • Selecting neutrals through independence, expertise, availability, and conflict checks
  • Framing referral questions that isolate contractual issues and requested relief
  • Written submissions supported by chronologies, witness evidence, and authorities
  • Responding to adverse decisions while preserving contractual and procedural rights

Participants can select and prepare for formal dispute routes appropriate to the public contract context.

  • Arbitration clauses: seat, rules, language, tribunal size, and appointment method
  • Administrative review and judicial review grounds in public procurement decisions
  • Litigation considerations: disclosure, precedent, public hearings, and appeal rights
  • Procedural calendars covering pleadings, document production, witnesses, and hearings
  • Interim measures, security for costs, and preservation of disputed property
  • Public-interest constraints affecting confidentiality, disclosure, and open-justice obligations

Participants can organise evidence and expert input for persuasive dispute submissions and hearings.

  • Document production using Redfern schedules, relevance tests, and proportionality
  • Chronologies and Scott schedules for issues, positions, evidence, and outcomes
  • Witness statements distinguishing direct knowledge, opinion, and hearsay evidence
  • Expert evidence on delay, quantum, engineering, and procurement compliance
  • Cross-examination preparation through propositions, documents, concessions, and sequencing
  • Assessing damages mitigation, causation, remoteness, and interest calculations

Participants can close disputes properly and apply improved controls to future public contracts.

  • Enforcement routes for awards, judgments, adjudication decisions, and settlement agreements
  • Public finance controls governing payment approvals, budget transfers, and audit trails
  • Close-out actions: corrective notices, payment records, releases, and performance data
  • Lessons-learned reviews converting recurring disputes into clause and process changes
  • Supplier performance management after disputes, including remedial action plans
  • Personal application plans for live disputes, controls, and stakeholder conversations

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

What you take back to work

  1. Public contract dispute triage checklist
  2. Claim register template
  3. Contractual entitlement analysis model
  4. Dispute escalation and authority matrix
  5. Settlement preparation worksheet
  6. Dispute resolution action plan

Who should attend

  • Public Contract Managers — need defensible methods for handling supplier claims and disputes
  • Procurement Managers — need to separate procurement remedies from post-award contract disputes
  • Project Managers — need to control change, delay and acceptance disputes
  • Legal Counsel — need structured contract and evidence analysis for public-sector matters
  • Infrastructure Programme Managers — need escalation and resolution routes for major works claims
  • Supplier Contract Directors — need to preserve entitlement and negotiate with public buyers

Skills and tools covered

Claim entitlement analysisDispute avoidancePublic procurement remediesNegotiated settlementConstruction delay analysisEvidence management

Tools and standards

UNCITRAL Model Law on Public Procurement, FIDIC Conditions of Contract, NEC4 Engineering and Construction Contract, Redfern Schedule

How the course runs

Training methodology

The course uses short instructor briefings to establish legal, contractual and procedural principles, followed by facilitated case work based on public works, technology and service contracts. Participants analyse claim documents, construct event chronologies, assess entitlement and test escalation choices in small groups. Negotiation and dispute-board simulations develop communication and settlement skills. Guided application planning helps participants adapt the methods, templates and controls to live contracts while respecting confidentiality and local legal requirements.

Requirements and prerequisites

Participants should have experience administering contracts, procurements, projects or supplier relationships and should be familiar with standard contract documents, change requests, payment processes and basic contract terminology. Experience with public procurement is useful but not essential. The course assumes participants can read contract clauses and organise factual records. No legal qualification, advocacy experience, specialist delay-analysis training or prior arbitration experience is required. Participants should bring familiarity with the types of contracts and disputes they encounter, rather than confidential documents.

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 have working exposure to contracts, procurement, projects or supplier management. No legal qualification or prior arbitration experience is required, but the course assumes familiarity with basic contract terminology and documents.

Bring examples of the contract types, claim issues or approval constraints you encounter, without sharing confidential documents. Participants may also bring anonymised clauses, dispute processes or template forms for personal reference.

It is best suited to public contract managers, procurement teams, project managers, legal counsel and supplier-side contract leaders. It is particularly relevant for infrastructure, technology, facilities management and development-funded contracts.

General contract management courses focus mainly on contract formation, administration and performance management. This course concentrates on disputed events, claims, evidence, resolution procedures and the public-sector controls that affect settlement and enforcement.

Participants can use the claim register, entitlement model, escalation matrix and settlement worksheet on active contract issues. The methods also support improvements to notice procedures, record keeping, delegated authority and supplier dispute governance.

Training runs from 08:30 to 16:30 each day, providing about 6.5 contact hours daily. Time is divided between instructor briefings, case analysis, group work, simulations and application planning across ten teaching modules.

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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