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FIDIC 1999 vs 2017: Transition & Particular Conditions Drafting Training Course

Focuses on moving between the 1999 and 2017 FIDIC editions, since 1999 remains common: clause changes, transition risk and drafting Particular Conditions.

CFC · Construction Contracts, FIDIC & ClaimsAll Levels#3146ClassroomEnglish , Arabic
Duration
5 Days
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Free substitution at any time · 30+ days' notice: full refund minus 10%. Cancellation policy

Sectors:Procurement, Contracts & Supply ChainCategories:Construction Contracts, FIDIC & Claims

Course Overview

The FIDIC 1999 vs 2017: Transition & Particular Conditions Drafting Training Course equips contract drafters, employers' procurement teams, and contractors' commercial staff to work confidently with both editions. It does not offer a general tour of FIDIC contracting. Its starting point is a practical one: the 1999 edition remains common on projects and in tender documents, while other employers now specify the 2017 edition, so organizations across the Gulf and Africa often run both at once and must decide which to adopt, how to move between them, and how to amend each without damaging its balance or internal logic. Participants compare the editions topic by topic rather than clause by clause. They study the longer and more prescriptive 2017 text, the change in the Engineer's determination to a neutral process with a consultation phase, the single claims procedure that now also covers the Employer, the separation of claims from disputes, the formal notice regime, advance warning, the fuller program requirements, quality and compliance verification, and the move from a Dispute Adjudication Board that the 1999 Yellow and Silver Books appoint only once a dispute arises to a standing Dispute Avoidance/Adjudication Board. The second half of the course is about drafting. Participants learn the function of Particular Conditions, the guidance FIDIC offers in its own notes, and the use of the FIDIC Golden Principles to test amendments. They draft and redraft typical clauses, including those that shift the balance of risk, change time bars, limit the Engineer's authority, alter payment terms, or adapt the form to the governing law, and they practice explaining and negotiating those changes with the other party. Mapping clauses between editions, keeping cross-references consistent, and handling framework or program contracts that span both editions are also addressed, as is how a reviewer reads a heavily amended contract to find what has really changed and what that means for pricing, delivery, and later disputes. The course is delivered through side-by-side comparison exercises, drafting clinics, amendment reviews, negotiation role plays, and a final workshop. Participants leave with an edition comparison matrix, a clause mapping tool, a Particular Conditions drafting checklist, a set of model drafting approaches, and a transition plan they can adapt to their own organization.

Learning Objectives

  • Explain the reasons the 1999 edition remains in common use and weigh the case for moving to the 2017 edition.
  • Compare the structure, length, and procedural demands of the two editions and what they require of project teams.
  • Analyze the change in the Engineer's determination, including neutrality and the consultation phase.
  • Contrast the claims procedures of each edition, including the treatment of Employer's claims and time bars.
  • Assess the practical effect of the formal notice regime and of advance warning on daily contract administration.
  • Compare the dispute provisions, from the Dispute Adjudication Board to the standing DAAB, and their effect on the course of a dispute.
  • Map clauses between editions and keep cross-references and defined terms consistent when amending or converting them.
  • Apply FIDIC's Golden Principles to test proposed amendments and explain the result to decision makers.
  • Draft clear Particular Conditions that adapt the form to the project and the governing law without disturbing its internal logic.
  • Identify amendments that shift risk, and assess their commercial and pricing consequences.
  • Review a heavily amended contract and establish what has really changed from the published form and what that means for both parties.
  • Negotiate amendments from a reasoned position, whichever side of the contract you represent.
  • Prepare a transition plan covering templates, procedures, training, and live contracts.

Who Should Attend

This course is designed for contract drafters, contract managers, legal counsel, commercial managers, and procurement and tendering specializts who prepare, review, or negotiate FIDIC-based contracts, whether for an employer, a contractor, or a consultant, and for those who sign or recommend such contracts. It is equally relevant for officials in ministries, public works departments, and public procurement authorities who maintain standard contract templates, and for the consultants who advise them. Professionals in contractors, consulting engineers, development finance institutions, and law firms across the Gulf and Africa will find the course directly applicable, particularly teams that hold live contracts under one edition while tendering new work under the other. It is particularly valuable for those who inherit a standard template built on the older edition and must decide whether to update it, replace it, or keep it for a further round of tenders.

Learning Outcomes

  • By the end of this course, participants will be able to:
  • Explain the main differences between the 1999 and 2017 editions and why they matter on site.
  • Advise on which edition suits a given project or employer, and state the reasons clearly.
  • Map clauses between editions without losing cross-references or defined terms.
  • Trace a delay or claim event through both editions and compare the outcomes.
  • Adapt procedures for notices, claims, and determinations to the 2017 edition.
  • Apply the FIDIC Golden Principles to a proposed amendment and record the result.
  • Draft clear Particular Conditions for a specific project and governing law.
  • Spot amendments that shift risk and estimate their commercial effect at tender.
  • Negotiate amendments with a reasoned position and explain them to decision makers.
  • Build an edition transition plan for an organization, covering templates and live contracts.
  • Review a heavily amended contract and report what differs from the published form.
  • Explain to site teams how their daily procedures change under the 2017 edition.

Course Outline

Course Outline:

Day 1

Two Editions in Use: Structure and Strategy

  • Why the 1999 edition remains common and what drove the 2017 revision
  • Structural comparison: length, clause order, and procedural detail
  • What stays the same: the core allocation of risk between the parties
  • Choosing an edition for a new project or program of work
  • Framework and program contracts that span both editions
  • Reading tender documents to confirm which edition, book, and amendments really apply
  • Practical application: participants build an edition selection note for a sample employer
Day 2

Engineer, Notices, and Time Management

  • The Engineer's determination: from fair determination to a neutral process
  • Consultation phase, agreement, and deemed outcomes
  • The formal notice regime compared with the earlier approach
  • Program requirements, advance warning, and early warning discipline
  • Quality management and compliance verification
  • Applying the new procedures to a site team used to working under the older edition
  • Practical application: participants convert a set of 1999-style procedures to the 2017 edition
Day 3

Claims and Disputes across the Editions

  • Contractor's claims under the 1999 edition and Employer's claims treated separately
  • The single claims procedure and the separation of claims from disputes
  • Time bars in each edition and the limited relief available in 2017
  • From the Dispute Adjudication Board to the standing DAAB
  • Notice of Dissatisfaction, amicable settlement, and arbitration
  • Handling live disputes on a 1999 contract using 2017 lessons, where the parties agree
  • When procedural differences between the editions lead to a different result in the same dispute
  • Practical application: participants trace one delay event through both editions and compare the outcome
Day 4

Drafting Particular Conditions

  • The role of Particular Conditions and FIDIC's own guidance notes
  • The Golden Principles and how to test an amendment against them
  • Drafting technique: clarity, defined terms, cross-references, and consistency
  • Adapting the form to the governing law without rewriting its logic
  • Clause mapping between editions and the errors it commonly introduces
  • Amendments to time bars, the Engineer's authority, and payment terms
  • Drafting clauses on interim payments and securities that stay consistent with the rest of the contract
  • Practical application: participants draft and redraft Particular Conditions in a drafting clinic
Day 5

Negotiating Amendments and Planning the Transition

  • Reviewing a heavily amended contract: finding what changed and why it matters
  • Pricing and negotiating amendments that shift risk
  • Updating templates, procedures, and staff skills
  • Managing live contracts on one edition alongside new tenders on the other
  • Reporting amendments to decision makers in plain language, with their risk consequences
  • Final workshop: participants develop a transition plan and a marked-up set of Particular Conditions

Upcoming Dates

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Cape Town · 25 – 29 Oct 2027 · Classroom

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