Prior to 1987, the FIDIC suite of contracts did not contain any
reference to a dispute adjudication board (DAB). When the 1999
first editions were published, the DAB was included in all 3 major
FIDIC standard forms of contract. The introduction of the DAB can
be directly linked to the Contractor's reliance on the
Engineer's determination prior to instituting arbitral
proceedings. The Employer's relationship to the Engineer was
then, as it is now, a controversial one which made many contractors
leery of the Engineer's independence when making these
determinations.
FIDIC caters for 2 different DAB models - a
"standing" DAB (in the Red, Pink and Gold Books)
and an "ad hoc" DAB (in the Yellow and Silver
Books) although their use in the FIDIC forms can be substituted as
required by the Parties.
