The FIDIC Forms of Contract 3rd-Edition

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In September 1999, FIDIC introduced its new Suite of Contracts, which included a ‘new’

Red, Yellow, Silver and Green forms of contract. The ‘new’ Red Book was intended to

replace the 1992 Fourth Edition of the Red Book, with the ambition that its use would

cease with time. This ambition has not materialised and is unlikely to do so in the future.

Despite the importance of the 1999 forms, there has been very little published on the

new concepts adopted in them and how they interact with the previous forms. This

important work considers these aspects together with the many developments affecting

the Fourth Edition of the Red Book that have taken place since 1997, when the second

edition of this book was published, and relates them to key contracting issues. It

is written by a chartered engineer, conciliator and international arbitrator with wide

experience in the use of the FIDIC Forms and in the various dispute resolution mechanisms

specified in them

Important features of this book include:

— background and concepts of the various forms of contract;

— a detailed comparison of the wording of the 1999 three main forms, which although

similar in nature nevertheless significantly differ in certain areas due to their

intended purpose;

— analysis of the rights and obligations of the parties involved in the contract and the

allocation of risks concerned;

— a range of ‘decision tree’ charts analysing the main features of the 1992 Red

Book, including risks, indemnities and insurances, claims and counterclaims, variations,

procedure for claims, programme and delay, suspension, payments and

certificates, dispute resolution mechanisms, and Dispute Boards;

— a much enlarged discussion of the meaning of ‘claim’ and ‘dispute’ and the types

of claim with a discussion of the notice provision in the 1999 forms of contract for

the submittal of claims by a contractor and by an employer;

— the FIDIC scheme of indemnities and insurance requirements; and the methods of

dispute resolution provided by the various forms of contract; and

— five new chapters in this third edition, four chapters dealing with each of the 1999

forms and the fifth chapter focusing on the topic of Dispute Boards