The Construction Defect Claim — the Legal Framework
After discovering a construction defect, the client's route is regulated by law, and it begins with the measure of quality. Article 641 provides: a thing is free of defects if it conforms to the agreed conditions; where such conditions are not agreed, the thing is deemed defect-free if it is fit for the use contemplated by the contract or for customary use. Equal to a defect is the case where the contractor makes a thing different from the one ordered or of lesser quantity. This measure decides whether a defect exists at all: first the contract, then fitness for use.
Establishing the measure is an evidentiary question: the contract terms or the technical brief show what was agreed; the documentation of the performed work and the expert conclusion show what resulted. Where the conditions are detailed, the comparison is simple; where they are not, the standard of fitness operates, and determining customary use requires study. Preparing a defect claim therefore always begins with comparing these two lists: what was ordered and what was performed.
Demanding Supplementary Performance — Article 642
After discovering a defect, the first remedy is supplementary performance: where the thing has a defect, the client may demand supplementary performance. The contractor may, at his own choice, either eliminate the defect or make a new thing. For the purpose of supplementary performance the contractor must bear the necessary costs, including transport, labour and materials; however, he may refuse supplementary performance if it requires disproportionate costs. Where the contractor makes a new thing, he may demand from the client the return of the defective thing. This is how the law balances repairability and proportionality.
Termination and Price Reduction — Articles 644 and 645
Where the defect is not cured, the client has stricter remedies too. Article 644: because of a defect of the thing, the client may terminate the contract under the statutory procedure, and in that case the contractor must reimburse the client the expenses connected with the contract. Article 645 offers the alternative: a client who neither accepts supplementary performance after the expiry of the period set for it nor terminates the contract may reduce the remuneration by the amount by which the defect reduces the value of the thing. This is the middle way where the work is not undone at all, but is worth considerably less.
The Warranty Period — Article 653
Contracts often contain a warranty period, and its legal effect is defined in Article 653: where the contractor has assumed a warranty period for the thing, a defect revealed within that period gives rise to the corresponding rights. Practically this means the warranty creates an additional support for the defect claim: within its bounds, a revealed flaw carries the same consequences as a defect in general. For residential construction, the length and detail of the warranty are among the most important points of negotiation.
Limitation Periods — Article 655
Time is decisive in a defect claim: Article 655 provides that a claim for a defect of performance may be brought by the client within one year, and a claim concerning a structure — within five years from the day of acceptance of the completed work. These two periods are the practical cushion of construction disputes: for a building, five years are given to reveal flaws, and the start of that period — the day of acceptance — must be documented at every stage of the case.
Frequently Asked Questions
Below we answer the questions most frequently raised about this field.
What counts as a construction defect?
Under Article 641, a thing is defect-free if it conforms to the agreed conditions, or in their absence if it is fit for contractual or customary use; a different thing or a lesser quantity is equally a defect.
What can be claimed for a defect?
Under Article 642 — supplementary performance (cure or a new thing, at the contractor's cost); under Article 644 — termination of the contract with reimbursement of expenses; under Article 645 — reduction of the remuneration by the amount of the loss of value.
What force does a warranty period have?
Under Article 653, a defect revealed within the warranty period gives rise to the corresponding rights — the same remedies as for a defect in general.
Within what period can a claim be brought?
Under Article 655 — within one year, and for a claim concerning a structure — within five years from the day of acceptance of the work.
How can a lawyer help?
A lawyer establishes the measure of quality, chooses the optimal remedy, prepares the claim and preserves the limitation deadlines.
How We Help on Legal.ge
A construction defect claim is built of three components: the measure of quality (Article 641) — what was agreed and what resulted; the choice of remedy (Articles 642, 644, 645) — cure, termination or reduction; and time (Articles 653, 655) — the warranty and the limitation periods. Each component demands evidence: the contract and technical documentation, the record of the defect, the acceptance acts. A lawyer translates this material into legal form, chooses the optimal remedy of the claim and preserves the deadlines — because a claim built on the deadlines decides the fate of the construction dispute.
The pre-court stage is often underestimated — in reality it decides the case: a written demand that documents the defect, the measure and the remedy sought aligns the contractor's position and increases the chance of a negotiated settlement. If no answer comes or it is insufficient, a suit built on the same material goes to court — and its systematic quality is already prepared in advance.