Liquidated damages and the penalty ruleFreeAn agreed sum payable on breach is not unenforceable merely because it exceeds a precise forecast of loss. The modern test asks whether the detriment is out of all proportion to the...

Liquidated damages where no actual loss is provedFreeA valid liquidated-damages clause fixes the contractual remedy for the stipulated delay. Once its trigger and the required contractual machinery are established, the employer ordinarily...

Employer delay and time at largePremiumIf the employer prevents timely completion and the contract contains no effective means of adjusting the completion date for that event, the stipulated date may cease to govern. The...

Formula or percentage-based liquidated damagesPremiumA formula or percentage is not objectionable merely because it is not a fixed weekly amount. Enforceability depends on the obligation, the interests protected, the proportionality of the...

Late extension-of-time decisions and liquidated damagesPremiumNot necessarily. A missed decision period does not automatically invalidate a later extension assessment or the employer's delay remedy. The result depends on the wording, the contractual...

Missing non-completion certificate and liquidated damagesPremiumWhere the contract makes a valid non-completion certificate a prerequisite to notice, deduction or recovery, the employer must satisfy that machinery strictly. Contractor delay alone does...

Passing main-contract delay damages to a subcontractorPremiumSubcontract value does not itself cap the loss caused by subcontractor delay. Recovery depends on breach, causation, the parties' contractual allocation, remoteness and any agreed...

Time at large and liquidated damagesFreeTime is at large where no enforceable contractual completion date governs the obligation. The contractor must then complete within a reasonable time, and liquidated damages tied to the...

Challenging liquidated damages after contractPremiumYes. Agreement to the clause does not prevent a later contention that the provision is penal or does not apply on its proper construction. The challenge must identify a recognised legal or...

Public-sector liquidated damagesFreeYes. Public funding and the absence of a conventional revenue stream do not mean that delay is cost-free or that timely performance lacks a legitimate interest. The agreed rate must still...

General damages after a liquidated remedy failsPremiumThere is no safe universal answer. The court must construe the contract, identify why the liquidated remedy failed and decide whether the stipulated amount also limits general damages for...

Whole-works damages and milestone delayPremiumA whole-works liquidated-damages rate cannot ordinarily be apportioned to milestones that the clause does not cover. A binding milestone may support a claim for proven general damages...

Agreed delay damages in subcontractsPremiumYes. A subcontract may fix an agreed daily or weekly remedy for delay, provided the clause is properly triggered, proportionate to the protected interest and coordinated with any...

Delay damages after terminationPremiumOrdinarily, no. Subject to the wording, liquidated damages accrue for culpable delay up to termination. Loss caused by delay after termination is then addressed through general damages...

Sectional completion and delay damagesPremiumEach section requires a defined scope, completion date, extension route, certification process and proportionate damages rate. Ambiguity in any one of those elements can prevent the...

Liquidated damages as the exclusive delay remedyPremiumOften, yes, for loss caused by the delayed completion covered by the clause. The employer cannot ordinarily avoid the agreed rate or cap by relabelling the same delay loss as damages for...