Begin by identifying the precise question the adjudicator must decide. Common issues include payment, valuation, extension of time, delay, defects, variations, termination, and entitlement to loss and expense. Check the construction contract, amendments, order documents, relevant notices, and any adjudication clause. Confirm the parties, the contract in dispute, the decision sought, and whether the adjudicator has jurisdiction.
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Prepare a chronology before drafting the referral or response. Record the date, event, document, and relevance of each key development. Gather the signed contract, specifications, drawings, bills of quantities, programmes, site records, payment applications, payment notices, pay less notices, instructions, variation records, photographs, meeting minutes, invoices, correspondence, and relevant expert or quantity surveying material.
Evidence should address the legal and factual elements of the claim. For a payment dispute, this may include the contractual valuation mechanism, the work completed, the application for payment, notices served, and the calculation of the sum claimed. For delay, identify the relevant obligation, the delaying event, its effect on the critical path, notices, updated programmes, and any contractual entitlement to an extension of time. Contemporaneous records usually provide the clearest account of what happened, but later witness evidence and expert analysis may explain or assess those records.
Create an indexed electronic bundle with consistent file names, page numbers, dates, and document descriptions. Keep the original versions and preserve relevant emails, attachments, photographs, drawings, spreadsheets, and site-management records. Check that calculations reconcile to the underlying documents and that dates, quantities, valuations, and contract references are consistent.
Separate documents by issue and mark the evidence needed to prove each point. Identify gaps early, including missing notices, incomplete site diaries, unsigned instructions, or unexplained changes in programme. Consider confidentiality and legal professional privilege when collecting material. The adjudicator’s timetable is limited, so evidence should be focused, cross-referenced, and presented in the order needed to understand the dispute.