Introduction

Contracts define the responsibilities and rights of all parties involved in business agreements. This interactive program equips participants with practical skills to manage contracts effectively, reduce disputes, and enhance organizational performance. Delegates will develop commercial awareness, risk management strategies, and a working knowledge of key legal principles, without this being a legal course.

Participants will learn how to:

• Enhance contract management skills to improve company performance
• Develop systems to reduce the frequency of contractual disputes
• Resolve disputes efficiently when they arise
• Manage contracts throughout the lifecycle—from pre-contract to post-contract stages
• Increase profitability by preventing unnecessary operational losses

Programme Objectives

By the end of the program, delegates will be able to:

• Understand necessary contractual and legal knowledge
• Apply different types of agreements effectively
• Enhance commercial awareness for smooth contract execution
• Identify and mitigate risk factors with commercial and program implications
• Maintain good record-keeping and contractual notices
• Understand liabilities arising from schedule changes and variations
• Negotiate and manage long-term contracts with confidence
• Resolve disputes proactively within the contract framework
• Implement appropriate dispute resolution methods, including ADR and mediation

Target Audience

• Contract Managers
• Procurement and Supply Chain Professionals
• Project Managers involved in contracting
• Legal Advisors and Non-Lawyers handling contracts
• Professionals responsible for dispute management and negotiation

Course Outline

Day 1 – Legal Framework and Contract Formation

• Importance of contractual relationships
• Internal and external dimensions of contracts
• Contract formation and key elements
• Oral, written, and electronic contracts
• Terms of contract and inter-business contracting
• Law of agency and sources of law
• Developing legal knowledge and skills

Day 2 – Contract Issues

• Precedence of documents
• Obligations to perform
• Delivery, acceptance, and risk transfer
• ICC Incoterms
• Liability in negligence
• Product liability and defective goods
• Intellectual property clauses
• Letters of Intent, Award, Comfort, Awareness
• Conflict of laws, choice of law, and jurisdiction clauses

Day 3 – International Contracting Strategies

• Standard form/model form contracts
• Drafting standard terms and potential problems
• Limiting or excluding liability
• Unequal bargaining positions
• Traditional contracts: Fixed Price/Lump Sum, Bill of Quantities, Cost-Plus
• Non-traditional contracts: Build-Operate-Transfer, Alliances, Partnering, No Cure/No Pay

Day 4 – Contract Management, Change, and Payment

• Importance of contract management
• Managing variations and scope changes
• Payment and financial events
• Delay, suspension, and extension of time
• Bonds and guarantees
• Defects liability and warranty periods
• Termination, remedies, and mitigation of losses and claims

Day 5 – Resolution of Disputes

• Negotiation, compromise, and settlement
• Litigation and arbitration
• Alternative dispute resolution (ADR), including mediation
• Managing disputes in practice
• Review and final Q&A