A commercial real estate services company – with some 300 offices worldwide – retained us to advise on streamlining its contracting processes for design and construction projects, aiming for greater flexibility, practicality, and ease of use. The objective was to create a suite of agreements that facilitated seamless interaction between their legal and business units, accommodating the wide variety of projects and use cases they and their project owner clients encounter in North America and beyond. This involved both customizing industry-standard AIA contract forms and enhancing a suite of non-AIA agreements. On the AIA front, we were asked to create custom reusable template agreements with thoughtful edits, including: AIA Document A101-2017, Agreement Between Owner and Contractor where the basis of payment is a Stipulated Sum; AIA Document A102–2017, Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Contractor where the basis of payment is the Cost of the Work Plus a Fee with a Guaranteed Maximum Price; AIA Document A104–2017, Abbreviated Form of Agreement Between Owner and Contractor; AIA Document A133–2019, Standard Form of Agreement Between Owner and Construction Manager as Constructor where the basis of payment is the Cost of the Work Plus a Fee with a Guaranteed Maximum Price; AIA Document A201-2017, General Conditions of the Contract for Construction, AIA Document A141–2014, Agreement Between Owner and Design-Builder; AIA Document B101-2017, Agreement Between Owner and Architect; and AIA Document B103–2017, Agreement Between Owner and Architect for a Complex Project. We were also asked to draft and improve several non-AIA contracts crucial to the operations of our client and their project owners, including Owner-Contractor Agreements for Construction (Lump Sum and Cost of the Work Plus Fee with GMP), an Owner-Contractor Master Agreement for Construction (Lump Sum or GMP), an Agreement Between Owner and Service Contractor, an Agreement Between Owner and Design Professional, and a Design-Build Agreement. We worked directly with our client’s in-house legal team to agree on a comprehensive approach aimed at creating a cohesive and adaptable set of contract templates to address its diverse needs while promoting efficient collaboration between the client’s legal and business units.
