The JCT agreement comprises of the following sections:

• The Recitals: sets the project overview background, brief description of works and design portion if applicable.
• The Articles: Identifies the primary obligations of the parties under the contract
• The Contract Particulars: Contains the project specific information referred in the Recital, the Articles and the Conditions.
• The Form of Attestation: Refers to the execution of the contract by the employer and the contractor, execution being either under hand or as a deed.

The Recitals

The Recital sets the project overview background, brief description of works and design portion if applicable. Under the 3rd Recital the contract drawings and other documents are listed. If additional contract documents are to be added they should be added by way of a further Article at the end of the contract (ie Article 10)

If something is not in the contract, it does not exist. For example, if there has been any pre-contract discussion via email or verbal and agreements have been made but these correspondences have not been included in the contract documents then they do not exist.

Often the list of contract documents may be too many to list in the JCT contract. In these circumstances make a note of the summary issue sheet and the summary sheet should:

1. Provide a full list of documents including drawings, spec, quantities, cals etc
2. Should be signed and dated by both parties

The Articles

The Articles identify the primary obligations of the parties under the contract.

Articles 1 and 2 form the basis of the agreement

• Article 1: the contractor is required to carry out the works in accordance with the contract documents
• Article 2: The employer is required to pay the contractor the agreed contract sum at the time and in the manner specified in the contract conditions.
• Article 3: Names the architect or contract administrator
• Article 4: Names the QS
• Article 5: Names the principal designer
• Article 6: Names the principal contractor (usually the main contractor)
• Article 7: Deals with Adjudication
• Article 8: Deals with Arbitration
• Article 9: Deals with Litigation

The Contract Particulars

The Contract Particulars contain the project-specific information referred to in the Recital, the Articles and the Conditions.

It is extremely important that the contract particulars are completed correctly and with great care as they are central to the contract.

Most of the items in the contract particularly has a default provision. This is to protect people that are less familiar with the contract. So, if you do not choose something then the contract will choose for you.

Anything relevant to the contract needs to be included in the contract particulars.

The Form of Attestation

The Form of Attestation refers to the execution of the contract by the employer and the contractor, execution being either underhand or as a deed.

The attestation provisions include various forms of attestation, namely the following 2:

• Under Hand: A contract executed under hand has a limitation period for initiating proceedings under contract for 6 years from practical completion.
• Deeds: A contract executed under hand has a limitation period for initiating proceedings under contract for 12 years from practical completion.

The liability is not specifically for defects, although they are included. Defects are usually dealt with via the defect liability period (ie 6-12 months). This liability of 6-12 years is a catch-all for any latent defects that occur later, for which the contractor is still liable for between 6-12 years period.