Construction Contract Disputes in Georgia: Payment and Variations

Compare tender scope, annexed bill of quantities, approved drawings and interim certificates; a payment invoice is not by itself proof of completion.

Record instruction, scope, price basis, impact on deadline and authorized approval; undocumented oral variations increase dispute risk.

Check whether an acceptance act is final or interim, defect lists, correction deadlines, retention and warranty provisions.

Site handover records, hindrance notices, updated schedules and contemporaneous correspondence help assess responsibility.

An interim payment certificate may confirm quantities or a milestone without constituting final acceptance. Read it together with the schedules, bill of quantities, outstanding amounts, retention and defect-remedy rules. If quantities are disputed, reconcile as-built work with signed certificates and drawings before calculating the claim.

A variation claim should establish who authorized the added work, how its price was agreed and its schedule consequences. Verbal instructions leave room for dispute over whether work was instructed or included in the original scope. Delay analysis depends on site handover records, hindrance notices, critical-path changes and contemporaneous written exchanges.

In construction payment disputes, compare actual quantities with drawings, measured works, signed certificates and the approved variation process. Identify who was authorised to instruct extra works and whether price and time consequences were agreed. Distinguish advance recovery, certified amounts, retention for defects and the final account; combining them can produce an inaccurate debt figure. If a contractor claims additional time, link each delay to site access, the critical sequence and written notices rather than a broad assertion that works were difficult. For the employer, retain the same records to separate contractor delay from impediments for which the employer may bear responsibility. Before claiming a penalty or withholding payment, check which obligation was due and whether partial acceptance changed the calculation.

A contractor performs additional work on an oral instruction and later claims a separate fee. The employer says the work was included in the lump sum. The original bill of quantities, variation procedure, authority of the person giving instructions, correspondence and as-built evidence become crucial. Assess any offsets and programme impacts separately. A newly issued invoice alone does not automatically establish a paid variation.