Fractional General Counsel
In the GCC, Africa & UK
What is Fractional General Counsel?
Construction and infrastructure businesses carry substantial legal risk on every project they run, yet very few can justify the cost of a full-time In-House Counsel. C&IDS provides the means to reduce a contractor’s or developer’s expose to legal and contractual risk by placing a senior, specialist construction lawyer directly into a business on a fractional basis.
A Fractional In-House Counsel is an experienced senior lawyer who works inside your business on a part-time, retained basis, rather than as a full-time employee or an external law firm instructed matter by matter. C&IDS’s role is to identify, vet and place that lawyer into your business — it is best understood as buying access to a specialist construction lawyer.
Once placed, your fractional lawyer becomes part of your team — on call for contract decisions, claims and disputes, working alongside your commercial and project delivery teams, and available for as many or as few hours each month as your business genuinely needs. The legal work is carried out under their own professional judgement, supported by the placement standards and technology C&IDS builds around every engagement.
Contractors, subcontractors and developers are increasingly recognising that a part-time lawyer with genuine construction law seniority delivers far more practical value than either occasional law firm advice or a generalist in-house hire who may lack sector depth.
Why a Specialist Construction Lawyer, Not a Generalist
Construction law is a specialism in its own right. FIDIC, NEC4, JCT and IChemE forms of contract, delay and disruption claims, variation management, extension of time assessments and international arbitration procedure all benefit from years of sector-specific experience. A generalist commercial lawyer is simply not equipped to manage this complexity at the pace a developer or contracting business with live complex projects demands.
How the Placement Works
C&IDS places a construction lawyer directly into your business on a monthly retainer, working within your existing structure rather than as a detached external adviser. Depending on the tier of engagement, your placed lawyer is available for a set number of hours each month, covering contract drafting and negotiation, live project legal advice, claims prevention and management, and dispute strategy — with the flexibility to scale the placement up or down as your project pipeline changes.
Because C&IDS runs the placement with low overheads and no bench of expensive juniors to fund, you pay for senior judgement rather than law firm infrastructure — typically 60–70% less than an equivalent specialist law firm engagement, and a fraction of the total employment cost of hiring a full-time in-house lawyer directly.
Clients
C&IDS places fractional general counsel with every tier of the construction industry, including:
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Main contractors operating under construction, design and build, EPC contracts or other forms of project delivery
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Specialist subcontractors — MEP, piling, façades, fit-out, roads and utilities — managing onerous subcontract terms and payment disputes
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Developers and investors structuring contracts and managing contractor performance across development programmes
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Energy and infrastructure businesses delivering power, water, transport and industrial projects, including FIDIC Silver Book and BOT concessions
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International contractors entering new markets who need embedded, locally informed legal expertise without law firm overhead
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FM and O&M operators managing performance regimes, KPI disputes and long-term operational contracts
The efficiency of the C&IDS model comes from combining genuine construction-sector specialism with a flexible, embedded retainer — rather than the broad commercial generalism of may General Counsels, or the rigid cost structures of a law firm engagement or a full-time hire.
Efficient, Affordable & Convenient by Design
The C&IDS model is built around three things construction businesses consistently need most: efficiency, affordability and convenience. Efficiency, because a placed lawyer already embedded in your business resolves contract and claims questions in hours, not the days it can take to brief an external firm from a standing start. Affordability, because you pay a predictable monthly retainer for senior judgement, not law firm overheads or the cost of a full-time salary and benefits package. And convenience, because your placed lawyer is simply part of the team — reachable directly, already familiar with your contracts and projects, with no new instruction letter or conflict check required every time a question arises.
There are no billing surprises, no junior associates learning on your file, and no permanent headcount to carry once a project pipeline slows.
If your business is managing construction contracts without senior legal support in the room, a free Discovery Call is the place to start.
Contract Drafting & Negotiation
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FIDIC (full suite), NEC4, JCT, IChemE and bespoke contracts
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Subcontract and consultancy agreements
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JV and partnering agreements
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Procurement strategy and contract framework development
Live Project Legal Advice
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Embedded advice during project delivery
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Contract administration guidance for commercial teams
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Variation and change management strategy
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Extension of Time (EOT) claim structuring and notices
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Early-warning legal risk identification
Claims Prevention & Management
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Claims management procedures and registers
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Drafting and reviewing claims notices and submissions
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Final account strategy and preparation
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Payment recovery and withholding dispute management
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Advising on and supporting the engagement of programming, quantum and other technical expert services
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Training for commercial and contract administration teams
Dispute Strategy & Resolution
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Early-stage dispute strategy and structured settlement
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Adjudication, expert determination and mediation support
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Arbitration management — DIAC, ICC, ad hoc
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Instructing and managing external counsel and experts
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Post-dispute process improvement
HOW C&IDS CAN HELP YOUR BUSINESS
Key Advantages Of Our Fractional In-House Legal Placement Model:
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Affordable fixed monthly retainer cost model, saving up to 70% over an equivalent specialist law firm engagement
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Highly efficient with a skilled legal expert directly embedded within your organisation, not external
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Convenience where your placed lawyer becomes part of your team, familiar with your own contracts and procedures
