Legal Issues: The Impact of Change Proposals

Change order — two words that frequently elicit an emotional response. As the trend toward fast-track construction projects continues, change orders should be expected. With many change orders it can be difficult to assess the full impact of the change on other trades. Changes sometimes come at a point during construction when the ability to perform a full assessment is low. As a result of the fast-track schedule, the contractor is frequently in a hurry to proceed with construction and might identify additional costs if he experiences delays in the processing of the change order.