AboutPeter M. Elliott Expertise First response to queries regarding extensions of time, variations orders, site instructions and payment using FIDIC and other forms of Conditions of Contract, based on English Law, and derivatives only.
Experience Value . . .
It's unwise to pay too much, but it's unwise to pay too little. When you pay too much you lose a little money, that is all. When you pay too little, you sometimes lose everything, because the thing you bought was incapable of doing the thing you bought it to do.
The common law of business balance prohibits paying a little and getting a lot. It can't be done. If you deal with the lowest bidder, it's well to add something for the risk you run.
And if you do that, you will have enough to pay for something better.
. . . John Ruskin (1819 - 1900)
"We are too poor to buy something cheap"
.Romanian Proverb 2002
A lean compromise is better than a fat lawsuit.
George Herbert (English poet 1593-1633)
I said it in Hebrew, I said it in Dutch,
I said it in German and Greek:
But I wholly forgot (and it vexes me much)
That English is what you speak!" Hunting of the Snark - Lewis Caroll
Match your presentation to the reader!
The joy of food lasts but an hour, of sleep but a day, of a woman, but a month, but the joy of a building lasts a lifetime. Syrian proverb.
Comments and observations leading to improvements in the translation of FIDIC Red & Yellow books into Romanian prior to approval by FIDIC (reference 'Preface to the Romanian edition')
Question For many years I have been told that digital photos are not admisable (legal) in a court of law. That all construction photos must be taken with a regular camera so that the date stamp cannot be tampered with. Is this true?
Answer Hi M Winstead,
My aplogies for the delayed response, but life in Kabul is never easy; power outages, generator breakdowns, flat batteries and then the internet goes dow for a day or two. At least it works some of the time. hopefully, I will be in europe soon and life will a little easier.
You do not state the applicable law, but English law requires the best available copy, which might be a digital or other copy, but is generally interpreted to mean the original.
Forgeries have been with us since the birth of time. Considering the work done by the Russians in the 60's and 70's and the recent spate of doctored photographs on the internet, I doubt that a photographic negative is any safer than a digital one. In either case, it is essential to prove the provenance of the document. Thus I see know reason why a digital photograph should b e rejected per se. However, I do not know of any case law to support my theory.
There are ways of proving the authenticity of electronic documents, such as CRC checks and electronic certificates, such as those issued for software. It depends on how important the subject is and the cost of security checks. Of course, you do not know that until you arrive in court, so you have to make best guess ahead of time.
