Leading lawyers say 2017 Edition contracts are “clear step forward” for FIDIC.

A newly published article in leading legal publication, International Construction Law Review, has given a big thumbs up to the Second Editions of FIDIC's Red, Yellow and Silver Book contracts, writes FIDIC contracts committee member Siobhan Fahey.

The article gives a comprehensive review of the FIDIC Red, Yellow and Silver Books, Second Edition 2017, focussing on three important aspects - risk allocation, contract management, and new claims and disputes procedures. This is probably the most comprehensive and well-written article on the 2017 contracts that I have come across since they were published and comprises a thoughtful and thorough commentary on the new contracts.

The New FIDIC Suite 2017: significant developments and key changes by Pinsent Masons lawyers Frederic Gillion, (Paris partner), Rob Morson (Johannesburg partner), Sarah Jackson (senior associate, London) and Chloe De Jager (associate, Johannesburg) is essential reading for anyone who uses these FIDIC contracts.

Noting that risk allocation is commercially at the heart of any contract, the authors observe that it remains largely unaltered in the FIDIC Second Editions. Outlining the changes to the contract management processes and the claims and dispute processes, the authors envisage that these developments will result in more balanced and transparent contracts. Proper use of the 2017 Editions should lead to improved contract management with more claims being resolved timeously and efficiently, and with consequently fewer disputes, the authors say.

The authors conclude that publication of the 2017 Editions of the FIDIC Red, Yellow and Silver contracts marks a clear step forward for FIDIC, providing more even-handed and balanced contracts with a greater emphasis on reciprocity between the parties, which should be a welcome change for employers, contractors and consultants.

The article was originally published in the International Construction Law Review Part 4 October 2018 [2018] ICLR 384 © Informa UK Ltd 2018. It is reproduced on FIDIC’s website, so as to be accessible by all FIDIC contract users, with the kind permission of the authors and of Informa UK Limited for which permission FIDIC is very grateful.