Understand the terms before they cost you money.
Neutral, contract-based meanings of commonly used construction terms for consistent interpretation across scope, pricing, risk, payment, acceptance, and disputes.
Definitions create neutral interpretation
Establishes neutral, contract-based meanings of commonly used construction terms for consistent interpretation.
Definitions are not regulated unless expressly stated in statute; meanings derive from contract practice and judicial interpretation.
Interpretation of contractual obligations and outcomes in disputes.
Identical work may be priced, executed, accepted, and disputed differently under comparable conditions.
Contract interpretation · Statutory adjudication, where available · Court
No statutory reference for fair workload, output, or efficiency.
Must independently define pricing logic, scope, and risk allocation.
Lacks an objective statutory benchmark for price or quality.
Scope of Work
Contractual description of included obligations.
Scope determines what is included, excluded, priced, accepted, changed, and disputed.
When scope is vague, price and completion become open to interpretation.
Acceptance
Contractual confirmation that defined criteria are met.
Acceptance controls when work can be treated as completed, payable, or deficient.
Without objective acceptance criteria, parties argue over whether the work is “good enough”.
Completion
Fulfilment of contractual obligations for the defined scope.
Completion affects payment, holdback, deficiencies, delay claims, and handover.
If completion is undefined, payment and deficiency disputes become likely.
Change / Variation
Deviation from agreed scope, price, or timeline.
Changes create entitlement, delay, cost, and documentation issues if not authorized and priced.
Work changes before price or authorization are confirmed.
Pricing
Contractual payment calculation method; not regulated.
Pricing defines how money is calculated, not whether the price is fair or efficient.
Parties compare prices without comparing scope, risk, acceptance, and change rules.
Result
Deliverable subject to acceptance, not effort or time.
A result-based obligation is judged by outcome, not by how much effort was spent.
The client expects a result while the contractor priced effort or time.
Risk
Responsibility for cost, delay, defects, or third-party claims.
Risk determines who pays when assumptions fail, conditions change, or work is disputed.
Price is accepted before risk allocation is understood.
Baseline
Agreed reference for scope, price, or schedule comparison.
Baseline creates the reference point for proving deviation, delay, change, or additional cost.
If there is no baseline, delay becomes argument instead of analysis.
Adjudication
Statutory interim dispute resolution, where applicable.
Adjudication may provide a faster interim decision on payment or construction disputes where legislation applies.
Parties assume court is the only path and lose time while payment pressure grows.
Lien
Statutory security interest for unpaid construction work.
A lien may secure unpaid construction amounts against property or project funds, subject to statutory requirements and deadlines.
Unpaid work is left unresolved until lien deadlines or proof requirements become a problem.
Need clarity before signing?
Review scope, pricing, acceptance, changes, and risk before they become disputes.
