What Is a DAAB under FIDIC Contracts — and Why Your Project Needs One
The Dispute Avoidance/Adjudication Board resolves disagreements right on the construction site without stopping the project. We break down how it works under FIDIC 2017, what it costs, and why development banks require it in major contracts.
On a major infrastructure project, disagreements between the employer and the contractor are not an exception — they are a statistical norm: scope changes, approval delays, unforeseen ground conditions. The real question is not whether a dispute will arise, but how much it will cost and whether it will stop the works. That is exactly what the DAAB exists for in FIDIC contracts.
What is a DAAB
The DAAB (Dispute Avoidance/Adjudication Board) is a panel of one or three independent experts appointed by the parties — normally at the very start of the project — who stay with it until completion. In the FIDIC 2017 editions the mechanism is governed by Clause 21 of the Conditions of Contract.
The key difference from arbitration: the DAAB works inside the project, in real time. Board members visit the site regularly, know the construction history first-hand, and can issue a decision in weeks rather than years.
How it works
- A standing DAAB is appointed from the start of the contract and serves until its completion — the default under the 2017 editions.
- Dispute avoidance: at the joint request of the parties, the board provides informal assistance to resolve a disagreement before it crystallises into a dispute (Sub-Clause 21.3). This is the most underrated function of the mechanism.
- Adjudication: if a dispute is referred to the DAAB, the board must issue a reasoned decision within 84 days (Sub-Clause 21.4). The decision is immediately binding on both parties, even if one of them disagrees with it.
- A dissatisfied party must serve a Notice of Dissatisfaction (NOD) within 28 days — only then can the dispute proceed to international arbitration.
What it costs
Typical costs of a standing DAAB amount to fractions of a percent of the contract value. For comparison: an international construction arbitration easily exceeds a million dollars in legal and expert fees alone and takes two to four years on average. DRBF statistics worldwide show that on projects with an active dispute board, the vast majority of disagreements never reach arbitration at all.
Why this matters in Uzbekistan
International financial institutions — ADB, the World Bank, EBRD — finance dozens of infrastructure projects in Uzbekistan, and their standard bidding documents include a dispute board as a mandatory element. For contractors and employers alike this means one thing: knowing how to work with a DAAB properly — from appointing its members to presenting your case — directly affects the financial outcome of the project.
How Bridge Consult can help
Bridge Consult founder Larissa Belousova is an ADB Accredited Contract Management and Dispute Avoidance Specialist, a DRBF Dispute Board Practitioner and a Member of the Chartered Institute of Arbitrators (MCIArb). We support parties at every stage: drafting DAAB provisions, appointing the board, preparing referrals and presenting the case, enforcing and challenging decisions.
Have a question about a live contract? Contact us — an initial consultation will help you assess where your situation stands.