How to Finish Interior Construction Without Disputes?

Interior construction is one of the most frequently made contract-for-work agreements in everyday life, but once construction actually begins, it not infrequently escalates into various legal disputes—over construction payments, additional construction costs, construction delays, and defect issues. The thing to be most wary of in order to prevent such conflicts is the practice of starting construction without a contract, relying on mutual trust. Since a contract serves as the surest standard for determining right and wrong when a dispute arises, one must specify in concrete detail the scope of work and detailed particulars, the payment schedule for the down payment, interim payment, and balance, the construction period including the start and completion dates, the delay-penalty clause, and the method of handling additional construction. In addition, one should carefully verify whether the materials or construction items listed in the estimate exactly match the scope of work in the contract.

Another point where conflicts frequently arise in practice is the issue of additional construction payments and construction delays. Even if additional construction is undertaken due to on-site circumstances or a change of mind during construction, if only a verbal agreement is made without specifying the concrete content and payment, it becomes a major problem later. Therefore, when requests for additional construction are exchanged, one must obtain written confirmation of the content, the amount, and any extended construction period. Construction delays likewise cause real damage, such as delayed store openings or setbacks in securing a place to live, so a delay-penalty rate—usually a certain percentage of the contract amount per day—must be clearly set in the contract. The contractor must present a realistically achievable construction period, and if unavoidable grounds for delay arise, must immediately notify and consult with the party that commissioned the construction.

Safeguards must also be prepared in advance for the payment of construction costs and defect issues after completion. Payments should adhere to the schedule set in the contract, but for the balance, it is desirable to reflect in the contract a structure in which payment is made after carefully checking for defects following completion of construction. If, at the time of completion, the contractor and the commissioning party jointly inspect the site and record the results in writing, emotional conflicts over the balance payment can be prevented. If a defect arises after construction is finished, the client should notify the contractor in writing along with objective materials to request repairs, and the contractor should likewise respond faithfully to this request and bring the work to a responsible conclusion.

Attorney Park Jung-gyu of the law firm Daeryun said, "In the end, most interior construction disputes stem from unclear agreements at the contracting stage and complacency in failing to properly record changes that arose during construction," adding, "The contractor should transparently present the scope of work and payment and immediately put changes in writing, and the party commissioning the construction should carefully review the contract and, when making additional requests, must always leave a written record of the agreed content."

He continued, "Rather than relying on vague mutual trust or verbal promises, sufficient communication before construction, a clear contract, and continuous written records during construction are the surest path to completion without disputes."

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