This paper discusses clarity and style of drafting in construction contracts based on research
carried out by the Project and Construction Management Group at the University of Birmingham
into the efficacy of the New Engineering Contract. One of the three principle objectives of the
NEC was the achievement of greater clarity. The first section of the paper asks whether existing
conditions of contract achieve clarity, deduces that they do not and investigates why not. The
second section reviews the original aims of the authors' of the New Engineering Contract
(NEC), before presenting the findings of research to date on whether the contract fulfils both
the needs of the construction industry and the self-stated alms of the authors of the NEC. It
then briefly considers some general legal criticisms of it and the changes made to the second
edition, the Engineering and Construction Contract (ECC). The paper then outlines the benefits
of clarity to effective project management and concludes that while ECC is not perfect, it is a
significant improvement on other forms of contract in terms of clarity. © 1997 Elsevier Science
Ltd and IPMA