PROBLEMI PRATICI NELLA CONTRATTUALISTICA INTERNAZIONALE

Avvocato Luca Puletti - Direttore Servizio Legale ASTALDI S.p.A.

1. JOINT VENTURE / CONSORTIUM

1.1 Condivisione dei rischi

Rischi Comuni:Common suppliersCommon consultantsThird Party relationship (transport, assurances)Banks / financingSite organization

Rischi Specifici:Cost increase of each scope of workVariation OrderAdditional worksSafety measuresBond concerning each scope of work

Terza Categoria di rischi:Force majeureDamages following Employer’s default (e.g. non payment)

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Caso Pratico

- Costruzione di un ponte

- Pali di fondazione, pile e pulvini eseguiti da Contractor A

- Sovrastruttura eseguita da Contractor B

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1.2 Obbligo di Lealtà

Il principio di buona fede nell’esecuzione del contratto è comune a tutti i contratti; nel caso di una joint venture sui soci viene imposto un obbligo di loyauté renforcée(lealtà rafforzata). Tale vincolo consiste in uno speciale obbligo di cooperazione in quanto i soci non assumono soltanto gli impegni formali derivanti dall’accordo di jointventure, ma anche l’obbligo, ricompreso sotto il principio generale della buona fede, di prendere ogni misura necessaria per il raggiungimento dello scopo comune. (L. O. BAPTISTA and P. DURAND-BARTHEZ, Les Associations d’Entreprise (Joint Ventures) dans le Commerce International, FEDUCI-L.G.D.J., 1986).

Secondo la prassi internazionale e la lex mercatoria, nel caso due soggetti decidano di unirsi in associazione, essi assumono l’implicito ma indiscusso ed essenziale obbligo di sostenere l’associazione e di non ostacolarne il raggiungimento dello scopo.

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Meinhard Case: “Joint adventurers, like co-partners, owe to one another, while the enterprise continues, the duty of the finest loyalty. Many forms of conduct permissible in a workaday world for those acting at arm's length, are forbidden to those bound by fiduciary ties. A trustee is held to something stricter than the morals of the market place. Not honesty alone, but the punctilio of an honour the most sensitive, is then the standard of behaviour.”

Caso Pratico

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- “Contractor shall not rely upon this information but shall conduct such independent studies as he deems necessary to enable him to perform the work”,

- “The Employer does not undertake any responsibility concerning information which are provided with this Report”

- “Employer is not responsible for the accuracy, reliability and completeness of the information provided and the Contractor has to undertake its proper investigations”.

2. UNFORESEEN GEOLOGICAL CONDITIONS2. UNFORESEEN GEOLOGICAL CONDITIONS

Esonero di Responsabilità da parte del Cliente

Tali dichiarazioni di esonero di responsabilità sono sufficienti?

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“The general rule is that where plans and specifications lead a Contractor to believe that the conditions they represent exist and may be relied upon in bidding, and the Contractor has made a reasonable pre-bid site investigation, the Contractor is entitled to recover the increased costs incurred as a result of the inaccuracy of such representations” (Bravo Corp. v. Seattle, 484 P.2d 399 – Wash. 1971).

Caso Pratico

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Argomenti Contrattuali

Nella fase di offerta, l’appaltatore non può eseguire indagini per costi esorbitanti, né indagini per le quali non è autorizzato prima dell’aggiudicazione dei lavori.

“The Contractor shall be deemed to have inspected and examined the Site and information available and to have satisfied himself so far as it is practicable having regard to considerations of cost and time” (clausola 11.1 FIDIC RED BOOK – Fourth Edition Reprinted in 1992).

“To the extent which was practicable (taking account of costs and time) (…) the Contractor shall be deemed to have inspected and examined the Site, its surroundings, the above data and all other available information” (clausola 4.10 FIDIC NEW RED BOOK).

A meno che non sia inserita una clausola scritta del tipo SILVER BOOK 4.12 (“The Contract Price shall not be adjusted to take account of any unforeseendifficulties or costs”), il normale disconoscimento NON è sufficiente.

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3. POSSESSION OF SITE

Clause 2.1 New FIDIC Red BookUno dei principali obblighi del Cliente.“Employer shall give the Contractor right of access to and possession of allor part of the Site within the time/s stated in the Appendix to Tender”.

Clause 1.1.6.7 New FIDIC Red Book“Site means the place where the Permanent Works are to be executed and to be delivered and any other places as may be specified in the Contract as forming part of the Site”.

Caso Pratico

Area per la costruzione di un ponte

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4. DESIGN

4.1 Responsabilità del Committente secondo il FIDIC RED BOOK

Non è possibile dirottare la responsabilità attraverso la manipolazione delle Condizioni Particolari: il contratto rimane un contratto di costruzione.Level of Design

Preliminary DesignOwner

Final Design

Shop DrawingContractor

As Built

Caso Pratico

Insufficiente progettazione individuata dalla data (vecchia) della progettazione stessa.

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4.2 Design & Build Contract

Il Committente non può interferire nella progettazione.

Secondo il “Design – Build Manual of Practice by Design-Build Institute of America”: -“The owner’s interest in having access to and evaluating the design must bebalanced with the design-builder’s interest in achieving its quality, cost and schedule goals”. - “The owner’s participation must be balanced with the design-builder’s need to avoid impact to the project schedule or the project budget”. -“To balance these competing interests, it may be appropriate for the parties to agree that the owner’s review will be limited to matters affecting technical accuracy, conformance with previous design submission and compatibility with the design concept”.

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4.3 Design & Build/ EPC Contract:

Responsabilità Totale del Contractor per il ProgettoUnica mitigazione di tale responsabilità: Employer’s Requirements - Clausola 5.1 del SILVER BOOK

“The Contractor shall be deemed to have scrutinised, prior to the Base Date, the Employer’s Requirements (including design criteria and calculations, if any). The Contractor shall be responsible for the design of the Works and for the accuracy of such Employer’s requirements (including design criteria and calculations), except as stated below.The Employer shall not be responsible for any error, inaccuracy or omission of any kind in the Employer’s Requirements (…)However, the Employer shall be responsible for the correctness of the following portions of the Employer’s requirements and of the following data and information provided by (or on behalf of) the Employer:-portions, data and information which are stated in the Contract as being immutable or the responsibility of the Employer,-definitions of intended purposes of the Works or any parts thereof,-criteria for the testing and performance of the completed Works, and-portions, data and information which cannot be verified by the Contractor except as otherwise stated in the Contract”.

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Possibili “protezioni”

- “The Contractor shall develop the Final design based on the Employer’s Requirements”

- “The Employer shall be responsible for the fixed portion of the Employer’s Requirements (minimum standards, technical requirements, design criteria and scope of work)”

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5. CLAIMS

5.1 NotificaL’appaltatore può perdere il diritto alla protrazione dei tempi di esecuzione e al rimborso dei costi per non aver presentato l’apposita notice ed i dettagli richiesti dal contratto?

Tempi di Notifica“The application must be made within a reasonable time that is must not be made so late that the Supervisor can no longer form a competent opinion of the matters on which he is required to satisfy himself that the Contractor has suffered the loss and expense claimed” (London Borough of Merton v. Stanley Hugh Leach Ltd (1985) BLR 51).

Decadenza solo se la clausola espressa“..Had it been a condition precedent, I should have expected the clause to state the precise time within which notice was to be served and to have made plain by express language that unless the notice was served within the time, the sellers would lose their right under the clause.” (Bremer Handelsgesellschaft MBH v. Vanden Avenne-Izegem(1978) 2LLR 109).

Clausola 20.1 del NEW FIDIC RED BOOK“If the Contractor fails to give notice of a claim within such period of 28 days, the Time for Completion shall not be extended, the Contractor shall not be entitled to additional payment, and the Employer shall be discharged from all liability in connection with the claim”.

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5.2 Global Claim

Un reclamo per protrazione dei tempi e riconoscimento di costi e spese, nel quale non sia esattamente dettagliato il periodo di ritardo e l’ammontare richiesto per ogni singolo evento di reclamo causa del ritardo, non verrà riconosciuto. E’ vero? A sostegno del Global Claim, si richiama il seguente “case”:

Nella causa “J. Crosby and Sons Ltd. –v- Portlant Urban and District Council (1967) 5 BLR 121 - The result, in terms of delay and disorganisation, of each of the matters referred to above was a continuing one. As each matter occurred its consequences were added to the cumulative consequences of the matters which had preceded it. The delay and disorganisation which ultimately resulted was cumulative and attributable to the combined effect of all these matters. It is therefore impracticable, if not impossible, to assess the additional expense caused by delay and disorganisation due to any one of these matters in isolation from the other matters”.

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6. DELAYS

6.1 Excusable Causes of Delay : Time and money ?

• Acts of God / Force MajeureDisastri naturali come earthquakes, tornadoes, volcanic eruptions, floods and fire ricadono sotto la definizione di “Acts of God”. Force Majeure clauses (denominate anche “Excepted Risks” clauses) includono Acts of God, ma ricomprendono catastrofi causate dall’uomo come war, insurrection, riots, major labour strikes, or Acts of the State.

• WeatherQuando le condizioni atmosferiche diventano particolarmente gravi ed oltrepassano l’intensità media o che ci si può ragionevolmente aspettare in una data località in uno specifico periodo dell’anno, il tempo atmosferico diviene un fattore che giustifica il ritardo. I records meteorologici, basati sulla casistica degli anni precedenti, sono una buona fonte di informazione nella determinazione delle previsioni atmosferiche.

Ma nel caso di new rainy season : Time + Money

• Labour Disputes

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YOU HAVE TO KEEP IN

MIND THAT THE

COMPLETION DATE

WAS ONLY AN

ESTIMATE, NOT AN

ABSOLUTE. BUT DON’T

WORRY WE’LL GET IT

DONE, OF COURSE

THIS *G!!# RAIN IS

GONNA DELAY IT

SOME MORE

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6.2 No Damages for Delay Clause

Esempi

- “Extension of TimeThe Contractor shall not be entitled to any claim for damages for any hindrances or delay from any cause whatsoever, but such hindrances or delay may entitle him to an extension of time for completing the work”.

- “No Damages for DelayThe Contractor agrees to make no claim for any damages for delay in performance of the Contract occasioned by any act or omissions to act by the Owner or any of his representatives, and agrees that any claim necessitated by delay shall be fully compensated for only by an extension of the timefor the performance of the Work as provided herein. Apart from extension of time, no payment or allowance of any kind shall be made to the Contractor as compensation for damages on account of hindrance or delay from any cause in the progress of Work, whether such delay be avoidable or unavoidable”.

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Rimedi

- Nonostante la clausola “No Damages for Delay”, le parti sono state in grado di recuperare i costi per ritardi in quattro occasioni: 1) nel caso di ritardo non del tipo contemplato dalle parti; 2) quando la durata del ritardo è irragionevole; 3) quando vi èevidente malafede e 4) quando il ritardo è causato da interferenza volontaria e per colpa grave.

- “An unreasonable or excessive delay on the part of the Employer may override a “no damages” (People v. Craig City, 133 N.E. 419, 426 – N.Y. 1921). A delay of eight months in the performance of a 350-day contract was considered “sufficiently unreasonable to strike the heart of the contract and justify the contractor is abandoning it”, notwithstanding a “no damages” clause” (Brady v. Board of Education, 226 N.Y.S. 707, 709 – N.Y. App. Div. 1926).

- “If an employer’s delay is found to be a result of bad faith, fraud, concealment or wilful misrepresentation, a damage disclaimer may be set aside” (Psaty & Fuhrman, Inc. v. Housing Authority, 68A.2d 32, 36 – K.I. 1949).

- “Extreme negligence can also supersede a damage disclaimer” (Ozark Dam Constructors v. United States, 127 F. Supp. 187 – Ct. Cl. 1955).

- “Wilful failure of a public authority to provide right-of-way does not allow the authority to hide behind a no-damages clause” (Southern Gulf Utilities Inc. v. Boca CiegaSanitary District, District Court of Appeal of Florida).

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