ABSTRACT
The ideal outcome of a building contract is for both parties to perform their obligations in accordance with their contract. Whilst this ideal is achieved in the majority of building contracts, a contract can sometimes be brought to a premature end by one of the parties. When this happens, the contract is said to be ‘determined’ (i.e. terminated). A note of caution must be sounded here regarding terminology. The terms ‘termination of a contract’ and ‘determination of a contract’ are to be understood as shorthand for the ending of the primary obligations under the contract. These obligations consist of the contractor’s obligation to carry out and complete the works and the employer’s obligation to pay the contract price in accordance with the conditions of the contract. Strictly speaking, the contract itself does not come to an end because its secondary obligations (i.e. the contract-breaker’s liability for damages) remain unaffected. Also, the right to refer to adjudication is not lost.1
