Dispute Resolution Methods
Peter Milne
Dispute Resolution Methods
Within the construction industry there are many occasions where a dispute can arise; from an issue over a development approval, through payment disputes and quality and defect issues, to Work Cover and compensation claims. All of these can be resolved through many different methods, these include, but are not limited to; litigation, mediation, arbitration and expert determination (both binding and non-binding). While all these options can provide a resolution, they vary in the degree of enforceability of the final resolution, and the likelihood of the relationship being maintained after the dispute is settled.
Because you will rarely get the exact same dispute more than once in the construction industry, there is a lot of opportunity for alternate dispute resolution (ADR) methods to be employed rather than the time consuming and more expensive method of litigation. Despite this, there are also a lot of times where litigation becomes the only option. When the business relationship breaks down, and there is no longer any desire for an amicable outcome, both parties merely seek what is best for their own interests. In the construction industry, there is also a large occurrence of expert determination, especially in the case of smaller businesses where the owner may not have expert experienced engineers or consultants working for them and will have to hire in an external consultant. Before any process is begun it is often advisable for the disputing parties to seek legal advice as to whether the process that they desire to undertake is actually the best for them or whether they should take a different route. This advice can often save people a great amount of money and time. As the less formal methods of dispute resolution are considerably less expensive Page
Peter Milne
2
and faster and will more often end with an acceptable outcome for both parties. This is because the issue is negotiated as opposed to being
Dispute Resolution Methods
Within the construction industry there are many occasions where a dispute can arise; from an issue over a development approval, through payment disputes and quality and defect issues, to Work Cover and compensation claims. All of these can be resolved through many different methods, these include, but are not limited to; litigation, mediation, arbitration and expert determination (both binding and non-binding). While all these options can provide a resolution, they vary in the degree of enforceability of the final resolution, and the likelihood of the relationship being maintained after the dispute is settled.
Because you will rarely get the exact same dispute more than once in the construction industry, there is a lot of opportunity for alternate dispute resolution (ADR) methods to be employed rather than the time consuming and more expensive method of litigation. Despite this, there are also a lot of times where litigation becomes the only option. When the business relationship breaks down, and there is no longer any desire for an amicable outcome, both parties merely seek what is best for their own interests. In the construction industry, there is also a large occurrence of expert determination, especially in the case of smaller businesses where the owner may not have expert experienced engineers or consultants working for them and will have to hire in an external consultant. Before any process is begun it is often advisable for the disputing parties to seek legal advice as to whether the process that they desire to undertake is actually the best for them or whether they should take a different route. This advice can often save people a great amount of money and time. As the less formal methods of dispute resolution are considerably less expensive Page
Peter Milne
2
and faster and will more often end with an acceptable outcome for both parties. This is because the issue is negotiated as opposed to being