Construction Contract Review | Protect your Building Company
Book Your Strategy Session
(07) 3063 3373
Book Your Strategy Session

What you get

A review focused on the clauses that move margin

Before you sign a draft contract, you need to know which clauses are commercially dangerous - not just what they say, but what they mean for your project. We focus on payment mechanics, risk allocation, scope boundaries, and termination triggers and give you clear action points.

Included in every review

Plain-English risk summary

A concise written summary of the draft contract's key risks, their commercial impact, and what you should do before you sign.

  • Payment terms and reference date risks
  • Scope, program, and delay exposure
  • Security, retention, and set-off provisions
  • Termination and suspension triggers
  • Indemnities, caps, and insurance requirements
  • Time bars and claim notice obligations
Available with your review

Negotiation support and Statements of Departures

Where you need to push back on the draft contract terms, we can provide clause amendments, a priority negotiation list, and a Statement of Departures if required.

  • Priority order for negotiation
  • Suggested clause amendments
  • Fallback positions and trade-offs
  • Statements of Departures drafting
  • Negotiation strategy and support
Construction documentation

Key risks we review

The draft contract clauses that cause the most financial damage

These are the provisions that consistently create disputes, cash flow problems, and margin loss for contractors and subcontractors in Queensland.

Payment and cash flow
Progress claims, reference dates, set-off, and time barsPay-when-paid provisions, vague payment schedules, and broad set-off rights can stop cash flow mid-project. We check compliance with Queensland's Building Industry Fairness Act and flag every mechanism in the draft contract that works against you.
Scope and variations
Scope boundaries, variation approval mechanics, and consequential claimsPoorly defined scope boundaries and tight variation approval timeframes in a draft contract frequently leave contractors completing additional work for free. We identify every gap and variation mechanism that creates uncompensated risk.
Delay and time
Extension of time clauses, notice requirements, and liquidated damagesStrict EOT notice provisions and uncapped liquidated damages are common in draft contracts and commercially significant. We assess whether the delay mechanisms are workable and proportionate to the project.
Termination and exit
Termination for convenience, default triggers, and step-in rightsBroad convenience termination rights and asymmetric default triggers can leave you exposed with minimal compensation. We identify exit provisions in the draft that create risk and advise on practical steps to protect your position.
Liability and risk
Indemnities, liability caps, warranties, defects, and insuranceUncapped indemnities and broad consequential loss provisions can expose you to liability well beyond the contract value. We ensure the risk allocation in the draft is proportionate and your insurance is aligned with what the contract requires.
Security and retention
Bank guarantees, retention, and security call provisionsWide-discretion security call triggers and retention regimes without clear release mechanics tie up cash and create leverage. We assess security provisions in the draft against Queensland requirements and commercial norms.

Why not just use AI?

AI tools are useful. They are not a substitute for legal advice

We hear this question often. AI contract tools have improved significantly and they do have a role - but there are things they genuinely cannot do when you are looking at a draft contract that will bind you for the duration of a project.

An AI tool will tell you what a clause says. A specialist construction lawyer will tell you what it means for your project, what it will cost you if things go wrong, and exactly how to negotiate it. That is a different service entirely.

What you actually need AI tool Blaze Business & Legal
How a clause operates in your specific project contextNo project context✓ Analysed against your role, scope and delivery
Queensland BIFA and legislative complianceGeneric guidance only✓ Specific to Queensland construction law
Negotiation options that protect margin and relationshipsNot available✓ Priority list with fallback positions
Risk trade-offs across the whole draft contractClause-by-clause only✓ Commercial impact across the whole document
Statements of Departures supportNot available✓ Drafted and negotiated if required
Time bars, claims pathways and practical enforceabilityMay miss practical application✓ Assessed for real-world enforceability
Why specialist review is worth it
  1. Experience built inside construction Rachelle has drafted, reviewed, and negotiated construction contracts for 25+ years across Tier 1 to Tier 3 contractors, government, and private practice. She knows what these clauses do in practice.
  2. Commercially disciplined We focus on the provisions in the draft that move margin and risk - not a clause-by-clause recitation of things that do not matter.
  3. Aligned with your delivery model We review against your actual scope and risk appetite, not a generic template. What is acceptable risk for a head contractor may be unacceptable for a subcontractor.
  4. Prevention is cheaper than disputes A review before signing costs a fraction of what a single unresolved claim will cost you.
Who we review draft contracts for
  • Principals and project owners (private and government)
  • Head contractors and builders (residential, commercial, civil)
  • Subcontractors and trade contractors
  • Homeowners entering major domestic building contracts

Draft contract types include AS4000, AS2124, ABIC, NEC4, FIDIC, and bespoke or amended standard forms.

Request a fixed-price quote

How it works

Simple process, clear deliverable

1

Send the draft contract

Share the draft contract, your role (principal, contractor, subcontractor, or homeowner), and your timeframe. We will confirm we can help and provide a fixed-price quote.

2

We review and analyse

Rachelle reviews the draft contract against your project context, identifies the key risks and their commercial impact, and prepares your plain-English written summary.

3

Clear action points

You receive a written summary of the risks, what they mean in practice, and what to do before you sign - including negotiation priorities if required.

Construction project

Ready to get your draft contract reviewed?

Send us the draft contract details and we will provide a no-obligation fixed-price quote.

Request a fixed-price quote Book a Strategy Session

FAQs

Common questions about construction contract review

What is included in a construction contract review?
A construction contract review from Blaze Business & Legal includes a plain-English written summary of the key risks in your draft contract, their commercial impact, and clear action points covering what to do before you sign. We focus on payment mechanisms, scope and variation terms, delay and EOT provisions, termination triggers, liability clauses, and security requirements. Negotiation support and Statements of Departures assistance are available as additional services.
How much does a construction contract review cost?
We provide fixed-price quotes based on the draft contract type, complexity, and length. Send us the details and your role and we will provide a no-obligation quote. There are no surprises. You know exactly what you will pay before we start.
How long does a draft contract review take?
Turnaround depends on draft contract complexity and our current workload. Let us know your timeframe when you contact us and we will confirm whether we can meet it. We accommodate urgent reviews where we can.
Can I negotiate the draft contract terms after the review?
Yes. Once you have the review, we can assist with negotiating amendments to the draft contract. We identify the highest-priority changes, prepare proposed wording, and advise on fallback positions so you can negotiate effectively without stalling the deal. If a Statement of Departures is required, we can draft and support that process.
What draft contract types do you review?
We review all major Australian construction contract forms including AS4000, AS2124, ABIC, NEC4, FIDIC, and bespoke or heavily amended standard forms. We also review subcontracts, supply agreements, consultancy agreements, and domestic building contracts.
What clauses should subcontractors pay most attention to in a draft contract?
Subcontractors should pay particular attention to payment terms, whether back-to-back flow-down provisions leave cash flow gaps, set-off and withholding rights, variation approval mechanics and notice timeframes, EOT entitlement, broad indemnities, and security arrangements. These are the provisions that most frequently create cash flow problems and disputes during delivery.
Do you assist with QBCC and Building Industry Fairness Act compliance?
Yes. We review draft contracts for compliance with Queensland's Building Industry Fairness (Security of Payment) Act 2017, QBCC licensing requirements, and other Queensland-specific obligations that affect how payment claims and disputes are managed.