Construction Litigation
Construction Parties
A CM as agent advises the owner without holding trade contracts and bears no completion risk. A CM at risk holds trade contracts and typically guarantees a maximum price, functioning like a general contractor.
The distinction determines liability exposure.
Alternative Names:
CM|Construction Management
Why it Matters?
Agency and at-risk structures carry fundamentally different exposure, since a CM as agent owes professional standard of care duties while a CM at risk bears contractual completion obligations. Contracts sometimes blur the roles, and a CM as agent that directed means and methods may be treated as assuming at-risk responsibilities. Clarifying the role in the contract and in practice is what determines the applicable standard.
Frequently Confused with
Related terms
Frequently asked questions
How do agency and at-risk CM roles differ?
What blurs the distinction?
