Bid documents / Contracts

Question 1

doctrine of promissory estoppel

Answer 1

The doctrine of promissory estoppel prevents one party from withdrawing a promise made to a second party if the latter has reasonably relied on that promise. A promise made without consideration is generally not enforceable. It is known as a bare or gratuitous promise. wikipedia.com

In order to bind a subcontractor to its bid price, the prime contractor must prove each of the following.

• prime contractor relied on the subcontractor’s offer when making its own bid
• subcontractor submitted a clear and definate offer
• subcontractor could have expected the prime contractor to rely on the subcontractor’s offer when making its own bid

Question 2

fidelity bond

Answer 2

fidelity bond is used to protect the contractor against dishonest acts of an employee such as theft, forgery or embezzlement

Question 3

broad-form indemnification

Answer 3

Of the hold-harmless clauses, broad-form indemnification indemnifies the owner and/or architect engineer even when the party indemnified is solely responsible for the loss.

Question 4

escape clause

Answer 4

An escape clause is any clause, term, or condition in a contract that allows a party to that contract to avoid having to perform the contract.

Question 5

qualified bids

Answer 5

Not permitted in public bidding

Qualified or conditional bids (i.e., bids which are submitted subject to a caveat added to the Form of Tender or under a covering letter or alterations to the Form of Tender) will be rejected unless the bid documents specifically permit such a qualification or condition.

For instance, a tender may be put out for widgets. If a bid comes back stating that the offer will sell widgets at $1.50 per unit to the municipality, “provided that all widgets are purchased before September 1” (a requirement not contemplated in the request for tender), then the bid is a qualified one.

https://canada.constructconnect.com/

Question 6

Criterion (in performance specifying)

Answer 6

Criterion (in performance specifying) refers to a quantitative statement of the desired performance

Question 7

doctrine of impossibility of performance

Answer 7

A construction contract may be terminated on the grounds of the doctrine of impossibility of performance.

Example of impossibility of performance is, unexpected site conditions found that make the construction impracticable.

It is a principle whereby a party may be released from a contract on the ground that uncontrollable circumstances have rendered performance impossible.

Question 8

contractual liability insurance policy 
-which contract is NOT typically defined in above
A. Hold harmless agreements
B. Lease of premises
C, Easement agreements
D. Sidetrack agreements

Answer 8

A

Question 9

canvassing

Answer 9

the process that before a contract award is made, the bids must be carefully studied and evaluated by the owner and architect-engineer

Question 10

span of control

Answer 10

individuals reporting to a common supervisor