Global Claims in Construction Law

1. What is a Global Claim?

A claim for which causative events leading to losses and expenses are solely attributed to defendant or a claim where the cause is led by factors not attributable to defendant immediately or is so intertwined with other acts that it is not possible to separate cause and effect of that factor from overall defendants acts leading to such consequences, than the claim is called a Global Claim.

A global claim, also known as a “total cost claim,” in the United States.

In other words, it is a type of construction claim where the contractor seeks compensation for the cumulative impact of multiple events or issues, without distinguishing the specific cause and effect of each individual event. The claim is presented as a total amount for all the delays and disruptions experienced, rather than breaking down the costs and delays attributable to each specific cause.

There must not be a material causative factor for which defendant is not liable for a global claim to succeed.

2. Nature of proof

The contractor must aver and prove three factors in a construction contract:

The contractor in order to succeed in a construction claim must therefore establish employers responsibility over events which led to delay and disruption, variation, acceleration, additional costs, EOT etc. Each event attributable to employer must have a causal relation with the claim. Therefore, ordinarily it is expected that each event will be separately averred and proved with distinct evidence proving the effect on the contract and that event either singely or cumulatively contributed to the loss or expense.

3. The Basis of Global Claim

Factors that cause events which are the consequence of delay and disruption leading to extra costs, expense or losses are influenced by number of different issues. Each issue may have a distinct cause and effect on the claim or it may have a cumulative effect.

For Example: If loss is caused by Act of God or a third party event not attributable to employer than global claim will fail. Another example can be of a bad weather causing loss which cannot be claimed as a global claim.

4. Things To Consider While Making Global Claims

• The claimant has a duty to particularise its claim to the greatest degree possible.
• Global claims are challenging to prove and should be approached with caution.
• A global claim essentially asserts that all the losses claimed are solely the defendant’s contractual responsibility.
• When making a global claim, the claimant argues that all factors causing the loss or expense are the defendant’s responsibility, with no contribution from the claimant or any other party.
• The claimant must accurately quantify all claims and assign liability, considering all factors and their impacts on the project.
• The claim statement should provide a detailed factual, contractual, and legal basis for holding the defendant liable, and must also account for any events caused by the claimant that contributed to the loss or expense.
• Global claims should not be made when events leading to loss or expense are concurrent, unless the employer’s cause is the dominant cause or it is impossible to apportion it (because of interdependent factors) based on cause and effect.
• If the claimant cannot prove that the defendant is the dominant cause of the claim, the court, with certain exceptions, will reject the global claim.

5. Conclusion

However, rejecting a global claim does not mean the court should not apportion claims based on cause and effect. The court must assess the impact of the defendant’s breach or event and determine its liability considering the losses or expenses caused by such actions.

Try incorporating these techniques into your routine and see which ones make the most significant impact. Start small, be patient with yourself, and remember that improvement takes time.