Claim Preparation

• Published date: 23 December 2021
• Subject Matter: Litigation, Mediation & Arbitration, Trials & Appeals & Compensation
• Law Firm: MMA Law
• Author: MMA Law

There are certain factors that a party must evaluate in the early stages of claim preparation as the process can often be considerably time-consuming and expensive. The circumstances that may give rise to a claim should have a significant impact on the claimant, and its potential value and probability of success ought to be large enough to justify spending the required resources to prepare it. Further consideration should be given to the claim's negotiation margin because although an inflated claim could be successful when reviewed by an inexperienced party, chances are that it would fail if matters develop into a dispute and an expert becomes involved.

Notwithstanding the above, it is imperative that any claim includes certain basic requirements to prove that the claimant is entitled to compensation. The contract and applicable law must be examined carefully, and the claim should be submitted in a sensible manner that includes coherent arguments supported by evidence to persuade the reviewer. It is also advisable to mention any faults or weaknesses but attempt to argue why they do not affect entitlement. A claim must include the following elements:

Cause:

A factual statement that illustrates the events and circumstances that lead to the claim and is usually easily substantiated by including project records. Typically, this would be due to the other party's act of prevention or an event outside of the claimant's control.

Effect:

The next step would be to link the cause with the effect that the claimed compensation is based on. This requires a thorough development of the facts and a realistic demonstration that the claimant, as a result of the event, is delayed or has incurred additional costs. The potential effect should be considered as soon as the causation is apparent because the relevant notices and records must be communicated and stored to substantiate the claim later on.

Entitlement:

Including the cause and effect of an event without setting out the claim's contractual...