Notification

Written Notifications should not be forgotten for any reason. If notices are discussed in the Contract Documents follow these documents to the letter. Even if the contract documents are silent, provide written notification. As soon as someone on your field or office team recognizes that there will be or is an impact, provide a notification to the project owner's representative. If necessary, leave it open for finalization when the impact is confirmed.

The delivery of the notification must be confirmed and signed/timestamped by the receiving party.

Be sure that the items listed in the center column are included in every notice.

How Can The Contents
Of this Website Be Useful To
All in Related Businesses?

Notice Content Items	Level of Importance
Timestamped	Critical
Company & Project Information	Mandatory
Specification Section/Page	Important
Contract Drawing Reference	Important
Site Location	Critical
Topic in sufficient detail	Critical
Current Status & Reservation of Rights	Critical
Photos or Sketches for Clarity	Important
Perceived Impact to Work/Project	Critical
Suggested Next Steps	Important

Possible Outcomes From
Failure to Provide Notice

The significance of failure to notify depends to a great extent on the stage of the project and the venue for claims settlement/decision. During the execution of the project the decision on how or if to proceed is made by the Owner or its representative. In arbitration it will be solely the decision of the arbitrator or panel since they need not strictly follow the contract or related case-law, though many will. In the courtroom this decision is made by the judge or possibly a jury. The odds here are that the contract will be strictly interpreted and adhered to.

It is certainly recommended that you know your contract and get a legal interpretation of the salient sections discussing notification. This is not a gamble that you should take.