Conflict Avoidance Process (CAP)

What is CAP?

CAP is a government-endorsed procedure that can be written into contracts to help parties involved in construction or engineering projects to resolve disagreements out of court. It encourages parties to resolve problems at the time of the event, to nip them in the bud before they escalate to drawn-out, damaging disputes. CAP can be written into contracts, or it can be utilised on an ad hoc basis by agreement between the parties.

How CAP works

1. A CAP Panel of 1 or 3 professionals will be appointed by RICS to help parties resolve the issue/disagreement they are facing.
2. The CAP Panel are experts in the subject at the heart of the dispute so will quickly get to the crux of the matter.  
3. The CAP Panel will work alongside the parties to understand the issue(s) they are grappling with.
4. Using their experience and technical expertise, the CAP Panel will then provide a fully reasoned CAP Report setting out a practical means to resolve the issue(s).

For a detailed explanation and a step-by-step walk-through of the process, see the CAP Webinar and CAP User Guide below.

Key benefits of CAP

• Quicker and cheaper than litigation and adversarial dispute resolution procedures.
• It helps to “nip issues in the bud” before they escalate.
• Helps maintain good working relations between the parties.
• The CAP Panel’s recommendations are not imposed on the parties.
• Parties retain control over the outcome of their disagreement/dispute.
• It gives parties an impartial risk analysis of how the dispute may be decided if the matter were referred to formal procedures such as adjudication, arbitration, or litigation.
  
• It is pay-as-you-go - you only pay for it when you use it.