AIA Releases 2017 Contract Documents

WASHINGTON (April 27, 2017) – The American Institute of Architects (AIA) announced, at A’17 Conference on Architecture ,the release of the 2017 edition of the A201 family of documents. This release includes updated versions of the AIA’s flagship documents, developed for the design-bid-build delivery model. Working with architects, contractors, subcontractors and owners, the AIA Documents Committee updates this core set of documents every 10 years. This helps ensure that the AIA legal form and agreements reflect changes and trends in the industry, and that the AIA Contract Documents remain the Industry Standard.  

“It is critically important that industry professionals learn about the 2017 revisions,” says Kenneth Cobleigh, Esq., managing director and counsel of AIA Contract Documents. “The changes impact the roles and responsibilities of each of the parties directly, and understanding the changes will help everyone to promptly review and finalize project contracts. We hope that all industry participants take advantage of the significant written resources and education programming opportunities available to learn about, and understand, the 2017 revisions and the full portfolio of AIA Contract Documents.”

Some of the major owner/architect changes include:

• Single Sustainable Projects Exhibit that can be used on any project and added to most AIA contracts to address the risks and responsibilities associated with sustainable design and construction services.
• Agreements contain a fill point to prompt the parties to discuss and insert an appropriate “Termination Fee” for terminations for the owner’s convenience.
• Architect is no longer required to re-design for no additional compensation if he or she could not have reasonably anticipated the market conditions that caused the bids or proposals to exceed the owner’s budget.
• Services beyond Basic Services and identified at the time of agreement are now categorized as Supplemental Services, to avoid confusing them with Additional Services that arise during the course of the project.
• Agreements clarify how the Architect’s progress payments will be calculated if compensation is based on a percentage of the owner’s budget for the Work.

Some of the major owner/contractor changes include:

• New exhibit with comprehensive insurance and bonds provisions that can be attached to many of the AIA owner/contractor agreements.
• New provisions relating to direct communications between the owner and contractor.
• Revised provisions pertaining to the owner’s obligation to provide proof that it has made financial arrangements to pay for the project.
• Simplified provisions for the contractor to apply for, and receive, payments.
• Sustainable Projects Exhibit, as noted above under the owner/architect changes

The new 2017 documents are currently available through an unlimited license or as a single customizable document on ACD5, the online platform.  The documents are also available as single, non-editable documents on AIA Documents on Demand and as paper version through some AIA Chapters. Comparative versions showing the differences between the 2017 and 2007 editions are also available at here.

For more information, visit AIA.