The Hon. the Attorney General (AG) Thabo Chakaka Nyirenda has this evening tipped architects on laws guiding their profession through a presentation in which he discussed the interplay between the law and architects.
The AG, making the presentation at Bingu International Conference Centre (BICC) in Lilongwe at Malawi Institute of Architects 41st Annual Conference which opened today and is closing tomorrow, narrowed his presentation to diligence in the presentation of bids, accepting a bid, negotiating contracts and contract management in relation to public procurement.
Nyirenda discussed with the architects the processes leading to the formation of a procurement contract, the anatomy of a design contract, and the effects of badly negotiated clauses with regard to the efficiency of dispute resolution.
“Efficiency in the negotiation, drafting and management of design contracts is the surest way to avoid disputes and delays in completing projects. The views in this paper are mine as the author, and not of the Malawi Government,” he said.
The AG, in his presentation titled ‘The law and the architect’, said most bidding documents require disclosure of litigation against the bidder, its legal owners and beneficial owners.
He said Regulation 111 of the Public Procurement Regulations provides that: “A procuring and disposing entity shall disqualify a bidder if it finds at any time that the information submitted concerning the qualifications of the bidder was false materially inaccurate or materially incomplete.”
The AG said architects, when considering to negotiate a contract, need to read thoroughly the law or consult lawyers before they sign any contract, warning that the consequences of failure to read the contract are costly.
Nyirenda advised that it is helpful to engage specialist and experienced arbitration practitioners, especially in large and complex arbitration disputes because courts tend to respect arbitration clauses.
For example, he said, in Access Communications Ltd v. Fags Investments Ltd (High Court of Malawi, Commercial Case No. 142 of 2012, the High Court of Malawi determined that litigation commenced in violation of an arbitration clause should be stayed, even though the applicant disputed the legality of the underlying contract.
“There is good commercial sense in avoiding disputes where possible as they can be expensive, time-consuming and a drain on resources. Disputes also place stress and tension on business and working relationships as cases may take years to reach a resolution,” the AG advised.
He implored architects to engage professionals when negotiating contracts and managing contracts because failure to conduct due diligence and engage professionals (legal experts) may expose a design professional to huge liability.
Vice-President Dr. Saulos Chilima is expected to join the conference tomorrow afternoon.
The AG: Making his presentation
