Impacts of Global Pandemics on Construction Projects and Dispute Resolution Provisions

In March 2020, the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the novel coronavirus disease (COVID-19) outbreak a global pandemic. The declaration compelled government officials across the globe to implement all-encompassing measures to combat the spread of the COVID – 19. These measures shut down many businesses, schools, and industries. The COVID-19 pandemic has profoundly impacted the construction industry; the full extent and scope of which are still being felt and evaluated. These impacts are presented in many forms; chief among them are the practical and legal repercussions of the pandemic that raised the question of “Who will bear the responsibility for the construction projects´ schedule delays and cost overruns?" To that end, this dissertation executes a thorough review of the construction industry contracts to investigate and propose creative and more efficient claims and dispute resolution techniques. This research further investigates the matter by conducting surveys and interviews with the subject matter experts and analyzes the impacts of COVID – 19 on construction projects and the contract provisions. The analyses concluded that the COVID -19 pandemic is an exceptional event beyond the party’s control, thus, protecting contractual parties from performing their contractual obligations. Furthermore, the analysis differs on whether the parties should be granted a time extension, additional compensation, or both vis-à-vis the cost and schedule impacts of the delays caused by the global pandemics