Arbitration center for engineering contracts

The Union of the Orders of Engineers is preparing to launch an arbitration center for engineering and construction contracts in order to resolve conflicts.

Chairman of the union of the orders of engineers, Khaled Chehab, said: “The center will kick off its work within the coming few months.” It will be located in the headquarters of the Order of Engineers in Beirut and will serve both orders, Beirut and the North.

“Both conflicting sides currently appoint an arbitrator and the order appoints a chief arbitrator to settle conflicts,” he said.

The union will rely on the latest edition of contracts by the International Federation of Consulting Engineers (FIDIC) and modern arbitration laws. In many countries, especially Arab ones, large scale construction projects are executed according to the FIDIC contracts. Some projects are still being implemented according to the 1987 edition, while the new contracts are based on the 1999 version.

“The problems that might occur in engineering contracts are not necessarily the result of bad intentions, rather the nature of the job itself, as there might be technical challenges that require the arbitrator to supply not only legal knowledge in the contract but also know-how and role distribution,” said Mustafa Fawaz, member of the Union of Arab Engineers, speaking on behalf of the General Secretary, Adel al Hadithi.