FIDIC contracts pre-2017 editions

The acronym ‘FIDIC’ stands for 'Fédération Internationale des Ingénieurs-Conseils' which, translated from French, is the International Federation of Consulting Engineers. It represents the consulting engineering industry both globally and domestically.

FIDIC produces standard forms of contract for civil engineering projects that are widely recognised and used. They are used on projects internationally and on some types of UK-based projects (for example, energy infrastructure and process plant projects). FIDIC produces a range of contracts to suit various job types and procurement routes—see Practice Note: FIDIC contracts—introduction. The principal contracts are the Red, Yellow and Silver Books—the latest editions of these were launched on 5 December 2017, these replaced the corresponding 1999 editions.

This subtopic provides guidance on the 1999 editions of the Red, Yellow and Silver Books and on other FIDIC forms of contract that were published before 2017. For information relating to the 2017 contracts, see subtopic: FIDIC contracts 2017 onwards.

It is important to remember that the FIDIC forms of contract will often represent a starting point for the preparation of a construction contract. Like other standard form contracts, they

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