Construction Without Borders: Legal Management of Construction Projects and Disputes Worldwide

Borders may still exist on maps, but for construction they have long ceased to matter. Engineering solutions, technologies, contractors and financing have long operated within an international logic. The legal component, however, is still often perceived as “local”, complex and unpredictable. In practice, this is merely a misconception.

Regulation does indeed differ from one country to another. However, the construction process itself is structured in the same way: from the permitting stage to design, from construction and supply to commissioning and, in some cases, disputes.

By understanding this methodology, it is possible to manage construction effectively from a legal perspective regardless of the jurisdiction, the language of the contract or the country where the lawyer is based.

This is exactly how the REVERA Law Group team works, providing legal support for construction projects and disputes without geographical limitations — from Central Asia to Europe and the ME NA region.

A universal construction process and international rules of the game

The strategy for implementing major projects is the same everywhere:

• Project structuring.
• Entry of contractors into the market.
• Design.
• Construction.
• Commissioning and the defects liability period.
• Claims and disputes.

International contract standards:

FIDIC contracts (Red, Yellow, Silver, MDB and others) — for infrastructure, energy and industrial projects financed by international banks.
DB, DBOM and PPP models — for public-private partnership projects and long-term operation.
Others.

These instruments introduce international practice, which legal teams then “stitch” together with local legislation, ensuring centralised project management regardless of how many countries are involved.

1. Pre-project stage: this is where the fate of the project is decided

Mistakes made at the outset are the most expensive. At this stage, we therefore help to:

• build the legal model of the project (EPC, EPCM, DB, PPP);
• analyse permitting and licensing requirements;
• prepare or adapt tender documentation;
• assess the risks of local regulation without overburdening the project with “law”;
• train the employer’s team to work with the contract model (FIDIC).

Practice:

As part of a major energy project in Tajikistan (a hydroelectric power plant), the REVERA team supported the employer at the tender stage by analysing contractors’ bids for compliance with FIDIC conditions and the requirements of the financing institution. This made it possible to identify weaknesses in the contractors’ proposals and avoid future contractual conflicts before construction had even begun. In addition, the legal team trained the hydropower plant personnel to work with FIDIC contracts.

The REVERA team also supported the preparation of a road map for a client regarding the entry of an international construction company into the Chinese market: local licensing requirements, available forms of presence, conditions for the admission of foreign contractors and possible restrictions on types of construction activity, as well as financial, timing and other costs, were taken into account. The results of the analysis enabled the client to make an informed decision on entering the Chinese market for the implementation of a construction project and to take future market-entry stages into account when preparing its tender proposal.

2. Design: controlling quality and liability

The design stage is not limited to drawings. It also includes:

• contracts with designers and engineers;
• allocation of the risks of design errors;
• intellectual property issues;
• alignment of the design with the future construction phase and the programme.

Practice:

When advising on a linear infrastructure project in Serbia, REVERA’s lawyers analysed the parties’ design obligations and adjusted the contractual model concluded on the basis of a FIDIC standard form.

As a result, the contractor from the outset obtained, in the employer’s view, a clear allocation of responsibility for the implementation of the design solutions incorporated into the project, which made it possible to avoid disputes with the contractor during the construction stage.

3. Construction: management of the contract, changes and claims

This is the stage at which the legal component becomes a project management tool.

We support:

• the performance of contracts under various standard forms, including FIDIC, always taking international practice into account;
• variation, extensions of time and claims procedures;
• the proper formalisation of additional works with due regard to local law;
• communication between the employer, the contractor and the engineer;
• the preparation of a strategy in the event of a dispute — even before it arises, including assistance with the appointment of Dispute Adjudication / Avoidance Boards (DAAB).

Practice:

In Uzbekistan, the REVERA team advised a contractor on working with the Dispute Adjudication Board (DAB) on a project financed by the European Bank for Reconstruction and Development. The correct pre-dispute strategy made it possible to implement the project and avoid arbitration during construction.

4. Operation and the defects liability period: legally, construction is not yet over

Legal work does not end once the facility has been commissioned.

We help to:

1. support acceptance and commissioning;
2. manage warranty obligations;
3. minimise the risk of future disputes.

On more than one occasion, we have helped our contractor clients recover retention monies in disputed situations amounting to millions of euros. Conversely, we have also helped employers properly document lawful amounts of costs recoverable from retentions, which remained enforceable even when challenged in court.

5. Construction disputes: pre-trial resolution and arbitration

Large-scale construction often ends in conflict. A dispute is not something to fear; what matters is being prepared for it.

REVERA handles construction disputes:

1. at the pre-trial stage — through claims work and pre-trial dispute resolution involving mediators and experts;
2. in international arbitrations;
3. in local courts — together with a local team;
4. as the client’s “dispute management centre”, coordinating lawyers, experts and engineers.

Practice:

We developed a strategy for handling a construction dispute in the UAE together with local lawyers, built the evidentiary record and legal position, while remaining the client’s “centre of management” for the case.

In another project, we assisted a contractor in an international arbitration in a dispute with a foreign counterparty from Central Asia.

At the pre-trial claims stage, we helped a designer from Oman recover amounts due to it.

In Belarus, the REVERA team assisted a major foreign holding company during the construction of a processing plant. The lawyers analysed the contract structure, identified dispute resolution mechanisms that were ineffective at the pre-trial stage and proposed a new model for resolving potential disputes involving a recognised international expert in this field of construction, appointed by the parties in advance. This allowed the parties not to suspend the project when disputes arose, as they inevitably did.

People matter more than geography

Clients do not choose the country where the lawyer is located; they choose experience, mindset and an understanding of the construction process.

REVERA means:

• More than 20 years of supporting construction and infrastructure projects.
• FIDIC certification and work with DAB and arbitrations.
• A deep understanding of the construction process and the law.
• The ability to speak the same language as engineers, contractors and investors.

Contact us when you need to:

1. bring a project into another country;
2. put a live project in order;
3. prepare or challenge claims;
4. prepare proactively for a dispute or prevent one;
5. keep the project under control without inflating the team.

REVERA is your reliable partner in construction without borders.

We support projects at all stages — from concept to warranties and disputes. When a project extends beyond a single country, contracts become more complex, risks increase, and the REVERA team is ready to take legal management on its shoulders.

Author: Andrey Artyushenko, Sergey Suschenya, Elina Hardziyenka.