Claim Responses and Determinations - Construction Claims and Responses: Effective Writing and Presentation - page 171

4. The Employer is not entitled to the payment of delay damages by
the Contractor.
5. The Contractor has complied with the conditions precedent to
entitlement.
The Engineer's Response
1. The Engineer concurs that:
a. The Contractor is entitled to an extension
to the Time for Completion.
b. The Contractor is entitled to additional
payment due to the additional time for
which the Contractor has been obliged to
remain on site.
c. The Employer is not entitled to the payment
of delay damages by the Contractor.
d. The Contractor has complied with the con-
ditions precedent to entitlement.
2. The Engineer, therefore, for the reasons
stated herein, considers and determines pur-
suant to Clause 3.5 (Determinations) that the
Contractor is entitled to an extension of the
Time for Completion of 2 calendar days until
30 July 2010.
In the above determination, the method of the Engineer has been facili-
tated because the original claim was presented in a clear and logical order.
It was therefore appropriate to compose the determination by means of
the addition of comments and counter-opinions to each section of the
claim. This would not be appropriate, however, if the claim was not logi-
cally presented or did not include the essential elements of cause, effect,
entitlement and substantiation. In such a case, it would be more fi tting to
create a completely-new response document compiled in a logical manner,
similar to the example used in Chapters 5-7. This would enable the essen-
tial elements to be addressed properly. In such a case, it would be neces-
sary to make frequent references to the claim document either by page
and paragraph numbers, or preferably by the reproduction of sections from
the claim within the response narrative. Whichever method is adopted, the
important thing to remember is that the response absolutely must deal
with the essential elements of cause, effect, entitlement and substantia-
tion, even if the claim itself does not do so.