Where a quotation for varied work is accepted, does the agreed price include the delay and disruption costs the variation causes?PremiumArchitects and engineers often call for a lump-sum quotation for a major variation. Whether that accepted quotation is taken to have covered the delay and disruption the variation causes...

Can a contractor or subcontractor be required to carry out a variation after practical completion?PremiumEmployers often want the contractor to stay on and do extra work during the defects period. Whether the architect or engineer can require it turns on whether the contract keeps the...

Where a variation omits work from the contract, may the contractor recover the profit it would have earned on that work?PremiumA properly made omission is not a breach, so a contractor seeking the profit lost on omitted work must find wording in the contract that reaches it. The forms differ, and the answer turns...

Where omitted work is handed to another contractor, must the employer compensate the original contractor for the lost profit?FreeOmitting work and giving it to a different contractor is not an ordinary omission. The standard forms do not permit it, and the courts treat it as a breach carrying loss of profit for the...

Where a variation forces a contractor to cancel a supply order, can it pass on to the employer the supplier's loss-of-profit claim?PremiumA variation can force a contractor to cancel a supply order, leaving the supplier with a loss-of-profit claim. Whether the contractor can pass that claim to the employer turns on the...

How are fair rates and prices defined when valuing variations?FreeWhere varied work differs from the contract work, it is valued at fair rates, and the argument turns to how a fair rate is calculated. The cases give guidance rather than a single formula...

In what circumstances does a quantum meruit claim arise, and on what basis is it valued?PremiumA quantum meruit is a claim for a reasonable sum where a benefit is conferred without an agreed price. When it arises, and how the reasonable sum is measured, are settled by a line of...

Can a variation take the work so far beyond the contract that a separate or replacement contract arises?PremiumA change can occasionally be so far removed from the contracted work that it falls outside the variations clause and becomes a separate contract, paid on a quantum meruit. The English...