Annual International Contracts Roundtable

Lawyers from the UK and France have jointly hosted the fourth in a series of annual roundtable events in Paris. This year’s event was on the subject of “Dispute Resolution in FIDIC Contracts and Considering the New Versions.” The FIDIC form of contract is an international engineering and construction contract typically used for major energy, oil and gas, infrastructure and process plant projects. The discussion focussed on the proposed changes to the contract due to be released this year, exploring in particular an increased emphasis on “dispute avoidance.”

The event took place on June 27, 2017 at the firm’s Paris office. It was very well attended by delegates from companies such as Vinci Group, Bouygues, Spie Batignolles, Dragados, Suez and Adwen. Our team included Graeme Bradley, Robert Norris, Ray O’Connor, Alex Johnson and Stephen Evans from the UK, and Antoine Adeline and Alexandre Le Ninivin from Paris.

Once again, the discussion was lively and interactive, with delegates contributing insightful observations about their experience of using FIDIC contracts in practice and sharing their reactions to the proposed changes.

A “key points” document summarising the main points to take away from the discussion will soon be available and distributed to the delegates. Given the success of the event, and the implications for users of FIDIC around the world, the team is hoping to host similar discussions in other offices around the globe.

Please contact Alex Johnson in the UK if you are interested in attending future discussions or have any questions about this event, and similarly, Alexandre Le Ninivin for any French-related matters.