Contract Disputes

No detail is too small

The finer print or the last few pages of your contract may save you tens of thousands of pounds

Before issuing a claim at the County Court or the High Court, check the terms of your contract. By reading through the terms of your contract, and paying particular attention to the fine print or the last few pages, could save you thousands in the long run. It is always a worthwhile exercise to check your contract as that document may very well dictate how a contractual dispute is to be resolved.

Be sure to make a few simple checks on the following before you file a claim which are often found the back of the contract:

  1. Jurisdiction,
  2. dispute resolution clauses

Most people consider that terms at the end of the contract are not important as those at the front. To assume as much could prove to be costly.

Jurisdiction

If your contract has a jurisdictional clause it will specify where a dispute should be settled.

There are different forms of jurisdictional clauses, for example:

  1. Exclusive Jurisdiction: This is where the clause specifies one jurisdiction which the parties must litigate. Exclusive Jurisdiction may be further strengthened by adding a waiver of forum non conveniens (FNC). FNC is an argument that a particular party may raise to avoid a dispute being heard in a particular jurisdiction, but by waiving FNC the parties will agree not to raise that argument in respect of the jurisdiction chosen in the agreement.
  2. Non – Exclusive jurisdiction: Such a clause allows the parties to sue another party in a court of their chosen country.

What if there is no jurisdictional clause? There are several factors to consider, e.g. where was the contract formed? where were the invoices raised/sent?

Dispute Resolution Clause

Your contract may have dispute resolution clause which provides how dispute should be resolved in the event a dispute arises. Such a clause may specify how all or certain disputes should be resolved.

The various forms of dispute resolutions which your contract may provide:

  1. Arbitration: For arbitration to be effective both parties must consent to this form of dispute resolution. There are several reasons why a party may prefer a dispute to be settled through arbitration as opposed to litigation hence why the contract may contain a provide for certain, if not all, disputes are dealt with via Arbitration, for instance, the hearings are private (whereas litigation is a matter of public record).
  1. Expert determination: Parties agree to ask an independent expert, and not a judge or a qualified lawyer, to make a decision on the dispute which will become binding on both parties. In this instance, an expert in a particular knowledge and experience in a chose field will be responsible in settling the dispute between the parties.

If you wish to learn more about Arbitration, Expert Determination and other forms of Alternative Dispute Resolution please feel free to check out our information sheet  ADR: Pros and Cons.

 

 

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