Uniform Building Contractors Ltd (Respondent) v The Water and Sewerage Authority of Trinidad and Tobago (Appellant) (Trinidad and Tobago)

Hearing listed

Case summary
Appeal

Case summary

Case ID

JCPC/2024/0062

Parties

Appellant(s)

The Water and Sewerage Authority of Trinidad and Tobago

Respondent(s)

Uniform Building Contractors Ltd

Issue

Whether compliance with conditions precedent to payment in a FIDIC contract is essential in order to enable a contractor to recover payment for variations alleged to have been made.

Facts

On 23 May 2007 the Appellant and the Respondent entered into an agreement for the design, supply and installation of 28.43KM of 500mm Diameter Transmission Pipeline (the “Agreement”). The Agreement was a FIDIC Contract. The contract price in the Agreement was stated to be TT$12, 642, 701.50 for “Package 1” and TT$15, 928, 924.00 for “Package 2”. Barry Paul, Civil Engineer, was employed by the Appellant as the Site Engineer for the purposes of the Agreement. By letter dated May 28, 2009, the Appellant terminated the Contract. By a claim form filed in the High Court on 27 May 2013, the Respondent claimed the sum of TT$13,915,215.46 representing monies the Respondent said were owed for works done and costs incurred on Packages 1 and 2. The sum claimed was stated by the Respondent to be for cost and expenses of four claims for variations, which were said to have been approved by Mr. Paul based on “Unforeseeable Physical Conditions”. The High Court dismissed the Respondent’s claim, finding that the contract terms followed the FIDIC Model and that the Respondent chose to deviate from the express terms of its contract with the Appellant, doing so as its own risk and for its own account outside of the price fixed in the Agreement. On 24 November 2023, the Court of Appeal allowed the Respondent’s appeal and set aside the High Court’s judgment. The Appellant was granted final leave to appeal to the Judicial Committee on 7 June 2024.