An acceleration claim seeks compensation for costs incurred compressing the schedule to meet a deadline.

Additional insured status extends a downstream party's liability coverage to upstream parties on a project.

The architect of record holds professional responsibility for a project's design and seals the drawings.

A bond claim notice is the required communication preserving a claimant's right to recover under a payment bond.

A cardinal change is an alteration so fundamental that it falls outside the contract's changes clause.

A certificate of occupancy is the municipal approval permitting a building to be legally occupied.

A change order dispute concerns whether work was within the original scope and what compensation is owed for changes.

A compensable delay entitles a contractor to both a time extension and recovery of delay costs.

Concurrent delay occurs where two or more delays affect the critical path simultaneously with different responsible parties.

A construction defect is a deficiency in design, materials, or workmanship that impairs a structure's use or value.

A construction manager coordinates a project either as the owner's agent or at risk holding trade contracts.

A constructive change is owner conduct effectively requiring extra work without a formal change order.

Contractual risk transfer allocates project liability downstream through indemnity, insurance, and waiver provisions.

Critical path method identifies the sequence of activities determining project duration, forming the basis of delay analysis.

A cumulative impact claim seeks the compounding inefficiency caused by a large volume of individually priced changes.

Defective specifications are owner-furnished design documents that cannot produce a satisfactory result.

A delay claim seeks time extension or damages for events preventing timely project completion.

A design-builder holds a single contract for both design and construction, consolidating responsibility.

Differing site conditions are subsurface or latent physical conditions materially different from what the contract indicated.

A disruption claim seeks recovery for reduced productivity caused by interference with planned work sequences.

The economic loss rule bars tort recovery for purely economic losses arising from construction contract performance.

The Eichleay formula calculates unabsorbed home office overhead during a compensable construction delay.

The engineer of record holds professional responsibility for engineered systems and seals the related documents.

An excusable delay entitles a contractor to a time extension because the cause was beyond its control.

An extra work claim seeks compensation for work beyond the contract scope performed at the owner's direction.

A general contractor holds the prime contract with the owner and bears responsibility for completing the project.

Construction indemnity provisions shift liability for claims arising from the work down the contracting chain.

A latent defect is one not discoverable through reasonable inspection, which affects when limitations begin to run.

A lien waiver releases lien rights in exchange for payment, executed conditionally or unconditionally.

A liquidating agreement lets a general contractor assert a subcontractor's claim while limiting its own liability to the recovery obtained.

Little Miller Acts require payment and performance bonds on state and local public construction projects.

A loss of productivity claim seeks the added labor cost of performing work less efficiently than planned.

A materialman supplies materials to a project without performing labor, holding lien and bond rights.

Measured mile analysis compares productivity in unimpacted and impacted periods on the same project to quantify inefficiency.

A mechanics lien secures payment for labor and materials by encumbering the improved real property.

The Miller Act requires payment and performance bonds on federal construction contracts above a threshold.

The modified total cost method adjusts the total cost calculation by deducting costs attributable to the contractor.

A no damages for delay clause limits a contractor's remedy for owner-caused delay to a time extension without compensation.

An owner's representative acts on the owner's behalf in administering a construction contract.

A pass-through claim is a subcontractor claim against the owner asserted through the general contractor.

A patent defect is one discoverable through reasonable inspection, which affects acceptance and limitations.

A pay-if-paid clause makes the owner's payment to the general contractor a condition precedent to the subcontractor's right to payment.

A pay-when-paid clause delays a subcontractor's payment until the contractor is paid, without eliminating the obligation.

A payment bond guarantees payment to subcontractors and suppliers, providing recourse where lien rights are unavailable.

A performance bond guarantees completion of the contract work if the contractor defaults.

A prime contract is the agreement between the owner and a contractor holding direct responsibility for the work.

Prompt payment statutes impose deadlines for construction payments and penalties for unjustified withholding.

A punch list itemizes remaining minor work and corrections identified at substantial completion.

Retainage is a percentage of each progress payment withheld until the work is complete and accepted.

Schedule analysis reconstructs project timing to establish delay causation and responsibility.

A scope gap is work necessary to complete the project that no contract or subcontract assigned to any party.

The Spearin doctrine holds that an owner impliedly warrants the adequacy of design specifications it furnishes.

A construction statute of repose bars claims a fixed period after substantial completion regardless of when the defect appears.

A stop notice directs an owner or lender to withhold construction funds to secure an unpaid claimant.

A flow-down clause binds a subcontractor to the prime contract obligations applicable to its scope of work.

A subcontractor performs a portion of the work under contract with the general contractor rather than the owner.

Substantial completion is the point at which work is sufficiently complete for the owner to occupy and use the project.

A surety guarantees a contractor's performance or payment obligations under a bond issued to the obligee.

The total cost method calculates damages as the difference between actual costs and the original bid.

A warranty period obligates a contractor to correct defective work discovered within a defined time after completion.