RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract 2018 : Architectural Services

The RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract is for the appointment of an Architect or Consultant where the Architect/Consultant undertakes a commission for architectural services for simple, non-complex, commercial projects of any value, in which the building works will be carried out using traditional forms of building contract, such as the RIBA Concise Building Contract, the JCT Minor Works Building Contract or the JCT Intermediate Building Contract.

The RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract is an agreement with a business client or public authority and is not suitable for non-commercial work undertaken for a consumer client, such as work done to a clients home. A contract with a consumer client is subject to the Consumer Rights Act 2015 and the RIBA recommends the use of the RIBA Domestic Professional Services Contract for work undertaken for a consumer client.

The RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract is not suitable for the appointment of the Principal Designer under the CDM regulations 2015 and the RIBA recommends that an RIBA Principal Designer Professional Services Contract 2018 is used.

Key features

• is suitable for smaller, less complex commercial projects and so has a light version of the RIBA Standard Professional Services Contract conditions
• is suitable for commissions procured on the basis of a traditional form of building contract where tendering occurs at the end of Stage 4 (Technical Design)
• focuses on the Architect/Consultant purely providing the Architectural Services

Easy to understand

The RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract is written in plain English, which provides three key benefits:

• the language used in the contract is succinct and easy to understand, compared to other standard forms of contracts
• the terms of the contract are fair and equitable for both client and Architect/Consultant
• the clause structure used in the contract avoids the use of large numbers of sub-sub clauses and large amounts of cross-referencing between provisions

Key changes in the new 2018 edition of the RIBA suite of Professional Services Contracts

• Novation the RIBA Standard Professional Services Contract includes a novation clause and the option for the architect/consultant to walk away from the project, if a Design & Build procurement route is subsequently chosen
• CDM Regulations 2015 the Contracts have been fully updated to comply with the CDM Regulations 2015 and greater guidance is given on the Regulations with more clarity around the role of Principal Designer
• Fees and charges the Fees section has been simplified by removing the boxes that aligned fees to stages of the Plan of Work. This is now a free-hand text box so that users can simply set out their fees as they wish/require
• Fee payments the payment frequency options have been expanded as well as having the additional option of using a draw-down schedule. The payment provision in the RIBA Standard and Concise Professional Services Contracts already comply with the Housing Grants, Construction and Regeneration Act 1996 and, although the Act does not apply to residential/domestic projects, similar efficient provisions have now been included in the RIBA Domestic Professional Services Contract for ease of use
• Insurance the Contract Details have been revised so that they clearly set out the main insurance policies that should be in place
• Dispute resolution the guidance on dispute resolution has been expanded but also simplified
• Net contribution this has been re-introduced into the RIBA Domestic Professional Services Contract due to developments in case law, namely the case of West & West v Ian Finlay & Associates, in which the Technology and Construction Court confirmed in its judgment that a net contribution clause does not offend the Consumer Protection Regulations as being unfair
• Schedule of Services these have been redrafted to suit the specific form of contract and align with the stages set out in the RIBA Plan of Work 2013. However, it is envisaged that Stages 0 and 7 would require separate forms of appointment as these stages would either pre-date the signing of the Contract, or may inadvertently extend liability beyond the normal terms of the Contract.

Copies required for each Party

It is legally advisable that both parties to the contract each have an original signed version. Therefore, you should purchase two copies of the contract, so that both the client and the architect/consultant has an original signed copy. Alternatively, prepare your contract online enabling you to issue final copies of the contract to each party at no extra cost.

Integration with other RIBA documents

The RIBA Concise Professional Services Contract have been specifically written to integrate with the RIBA Building Contracts and the RIBA Plan of Work 2013.