Session 1- Delay Damages Analysis

Most construction disputes involve a delay component; but analyzing and assigning responsibility for delay would be merely an academic exercise were it not for the costs associated with those delays. This webinar will explore the various delay related costs, or damages, incurred on a construction project both from an owner’s perspective as well as a contractor’s. It will look at the types of damages, the proof of damages, and the recoverability of those damages. I addition to “actual damages,” it will also cover the concepts surrounding liquidated damages and how liquidated damages limit both exposure and recovery.

Webinar Objectives

When delay is experienced on a construction project all parties, including owners, contractors, subcontractors, and design professionals, will incur additional costs known as delay damages. This webinar will provide a guide for identifying the various cost components of the delay damages experienced by each party, the methods for calculating those components, and the ways in which recovery can be sought.

Webinar Agenda

• What are the various categories of delay damages?
• What comprises these categories of damages?
• How are delay damages quantified and calculated?
• How are delay damages recoverable and recovered?

Webinar Highlights

In this session we will cover:

• Compensable, Excusable, and Non-excusable delay
• Direct and indirect damages
• Liquidated versus actual damages
• Contractor versus owner damages
• Accounting for all damages suffered
• Formulas for estimating indirect damages

Who Should Attend

Construction management professions including:

• Project managers
• Construction company Vice President level executives
• Construction company corporate counsels
• Attorneys specializing in construction law
• Architects and engineers

Session 2- Concurrent Delay – Still A “Get Out Of Jail Free” Card?

The concurrent delay was until recently an end-of-the-job defense for owners and contractors.  Owners typically used the concurrent delay argument to escape paying for the compensable delay.  Contractors, on the other hand frequently use the concurrent delay to get out from under liquidated damage assessment.  When owners impose liquidated damages at the end of a delayed project contractors often respond with allegations of concurrent delay.  That is, contractors argue that some or all the project delay was actually caused either by the owner or an external force, concurrent with the contractor’s delays and therefore liquidated damages should be forgiven or excused.  As owners generally do not impose liquidated damages until the end of the project, frequently a contractor’s claim of concurrent delay is not submitted until the project is complete.  This webinar explores mechanisms, based on recent court rulings that owners employ to defeat a contractor’s “concurrent delay defense”.  This webinar will focus on what contractors must do to maintain their ability to use the concurrent argument at the end of the project.

Webinar Objectives

After attending this webinar attendees will have a better understanding of the issues concerning the pricing of contractor delay damages. Contractors will gain knowledge about the various methods of calculating extended field office overhead costs. Owners will learn some contractual methods for predetermining this element of delay costs in order to prevent the need for end-of-the-job audits or disputes over such costs.

Webinar Agenda

• Introduction
• What is the concurrent delay?
• The concurrent delay test
• Background
• The doctrine of concurrent delay
• Why is concurrent delay important in the U.S.?
• How is concurrent delay handled in the UK?
• Concurrent delay under UK & FIDIC contracts
• Liquidated damages
• When do contractors assert concurrent delay?
• Owner’s newest defenses
• Recent court cases on concurrent delay
  • M. Maropakis Carpentry v US
  • Opinski Construction v City of Oakdale
  • George Sollitt Construction v US
  • Abhe & Svoboda v Michigan DOT
• Defenses & practical tips for owners
• Practical tips for contractors
• Conclusion
• Questions & discussion

Webinar Highlights

This information-packed webinar will help you:

• Define the term concurrent delay
• Understand the background of today’s concurrent delay doctrine in U.S. law
• Learn about the traditional concurrent delay defense common in the industry
• Be aware of two recent court cases – one Federal and the other two State – that provide owners some new defenses against the concurrent delay defense and Receive practical advice for both owners and contractors when dealing with the issue of concurrent delay and liquidated damages

Who Should Attend

• Owners
• Contractors 
• Construction Executives
• Subcontractors
• Design professionals 
• Construction managers

Session 3 - Schedule Delay Analysis – Choosing A Method & Why They Deliver Different Results

All too many in the construction industry practitioners contend that schedule delay analysis is subject to entirely too much judgement on the part of the delay analyst. Many consider delay analysis unreliable and inaccurate. The purpose of this webinar is to set forth what delay analysts and construction attorneys need to consider when selecting a forensic scheduling methodology and why these factors are so important to the initial choice of method. Additionally, the webinar will clearly explain why different methods, relying on the same project records, can end up with different conclusions. This results not from excessive judgement on the part of the analyst, but rather on the way the various forensic schedule methods operate. 

Webinar Objectives

This webinar is unique in that it addresses the common methods of schedule delay analysis, including their strengths and weaknesses. The webinar discusses factors to be considered when selecting a method and the risk of trying to change delay analysis methodologies during the life of the dispute. Finally, the webinar explains why different delay analysis methods end up producing different results despite being based on the same project records and documents.

Webinar Highlights

Attend this 90-minute webinar to get answers to pressing questions, such as:

• What is a forensic schedule analysis?
• What types of schedule delay analysis exist and how do they differ?
• How do you choose a schedule delay analysis method?
• What factors and issues should be addressed before committing to a potentially lengthy and expensive process?
• Is the choice of delay analysis methods irrevocable once made?
• What is the risk of trying to change methods in mid-stream?
• Why do different delay analysis methods yield different results?

Who Should Attend

• Project owners and their representatives
• Construction and Program managers
• Contractors and subcontractors
• Design professionals
• Attorneys for all project participants

Session 4 - Proving & Pricing Subcontractor Delay Claims

Much has been written over the years about proving and pricing contractor claims on construction projects. But little has been published about or presented on subcontractor delay claims. Do subcontractors have the same rights and remedies as the prime contractor? Are they held to the same standards? What are their legal rights? Do owners owe time extensions for subcontractor delays? Are prime contractors at risk when they “pass through” subcontractor delay claims to an owner? Are subcontractors at risk when a prime contractor opts not to sponsor their delay claim to the owner? This webinar examines issues concerning subcontractor delay claims.

Webinar Objectives

Attendees at this webinar will –

• Learn the value of pre-planning activities in such a manner as to avoid causing delay and impact to subcontractors.
• As General Contractors, learn about the arguments subcontractors can use to pursue delay and impact claims.
• Contractors become knowledgeable concerning the risks of sponsoring subcontractor delay claims to owners.
• Subcontractors will learn the elements of proof necessary to successfully prosecute a delay and impact claim against a General Contractor.
• Owners will gain insight into analysis of and /or defense against subcontractor delay claims passed through by their General Contractors.

Webinar Agenda

• Subcontractor delays & impacts
• Contractual issues concerning subcontractor delay claims
• Sponsoring subcontractor claims
• Notice issues
• Entitlement issues
• Causation
• Damages
• Delays caused by General Contractor or another subcontractor
• Delays caused by owners
• Other issues concerning subcontractor delays
• Other theories of recovery
• Forensic schedule analysis
• Concurrent Delay
• Delay claims pricing considerations
• Dispute resolution forums
• Conclusion

Webinar Highlights

• In this program attendees will learn the typical causes of subcontractor delay and impact claims.
• Attendees will be exposed to contractual issues surrounding subcontractor delay claims.
• The program will identify practical problems concerning subcontractor delay claims from the project owner’s viewpoint.
• The program highlights problems facing General Contractors when they are asked to pass through subcontractor delay claims to owners.
• The program discusses what damages may flow from subcontractor delay claims and the recoverability of such damages.  
• Attendees will learn the theories of recovery a subcontractor can employ when pursuing a delay claim against the General Contractor.

Who Should Attend

• General Contractors – Project Managers & Executives
• Owners and their representatives
• Design professionals performing services during construction
• Construction managers
• Attorneys representing owners and contractors