Cases - Attorney General for the Falklands Islands v Gordon Forbes Construction (Falklands) Ltd

Record details

Name

Attorney General for the Falklands Islands v Gordon Forbes Construction (Falklands) Ltd

Date

(2003)

Citation

6 BLR 280

Legislation

• Arbitration Act 1996
• Civil Evidence Act 1968

Keywords

FIDIC contracts - contemporary records - keeping records

Summary

Under clause 6.10 a contractor must keep contemporary records in order to substantiate any claim. The requirement for contemporary records in the FIDIC Contracts has been considered here by Acting Judge Sanders in the case of Judge Sanders considered that contemporary records were:

'original or primary documents, or copies thereof, produced or prepared at or about the time giving rise to a claim, whether by or for the contractor or the employer.'

The important point then about contemporary records is that they arise at the time of the claim. The emphasis is very much upon the instantaneous keeping of records which document the events and circumstances at the time of, or certainly very close to the time of, the claim.

Judge Sanders held that it was not possible to avoid the contractual requirement of contemporary records by simply producing witness statements at some point after the event. Those witness statements may of course record the recollections of those who were involved at the time, but they are no substitute for the proper keeping of contemporary records at the time of the claim.