Notice periods and “check the clause”

Every date Astruct shows on an issue comes with the clause it was counted from. It stays marked Check the clause until someone on your team confirms the rule for the project.

Astruct says what your contract says. It does not give legal advice, and it does not tell you whether a notice was given properly. Your team reads the clause and decides.

How a period is counted

1. The event. Astruct finds the event the contract counts from, for example the time a direction was received or the date a delay first appeared in the record. It shows the email or document that fixes that date.
2. The clause. It finds the clause in your contract that deals with the event. Where a special condition replaces a general condition, it uses the special condition. It shows the clause text and its page.
3. The count. It applies the period the clause states:
   • business days or calendar days, as the contract defines them;
   • public holidays in the state named in the contract, and any other days the contract excludes, such as a Christmas shutdown;
   • when a notice is received, where the contract says, for example, that an email sent after 5.00 pm is received the next business day;
   • whether the day of the event itself counts.
4. The result. A plain date with the working shown, such as Received Fri 25 Sep, 3:12 pm · 5 business days · Brisbane · period ends Fri 2 Oct.

Confirming the rule

Open the issue and read the clause beside the date. If the count matches the clause, choose Confirm rule. You confirm each rule once per project. Later issues under the same clause use the confirmed rule.

If it doesn’t match, for example because a later amendment changed the period, correct it on the issue.

The limits

Be clear about what Astruct can and can’t know:

• It only sees connected sources. A direction given on site, by phone or to a mailbox you haven’t connected isn’t seen until it is added.
• It works from the contract you gave it. A missing annexure, amendment or side letter can change the count.
• The start date can be a judgement. When a delay first became known can be arguable. Astruct shows its evidence so you can decide.
• The law can add to the contract. Security of payment law and other legislation can set their own periods, and courts can read notice clauses in different ways.

Your team remains responsible for your notices, and for getting legal advice where you need it.