Project management, contracts and professional responsibility
Project management, contracts and professional responsibility
This domain tests how scope, risk and liability are allocated from appointment to handover. Luxembourg practice combines the Civil Code contract of enterprise, public-procurement rules and the professional obligations of architects and engineers.
Core rules
- The written appointment defines the mission: studies, permit file, tender, site supervision, acceptance and post-completion. A vague full-service label does not transfer duties that were excluded.
- Public works follow the Law of 8 April 2018 on public procurement and its thresholds and procedures. Private works depend on the contract, the cahier des charges and the devis.
- Variations should be instructed in writing before execution. Provisional acceptance (réception provisoire) starts the defects-liability period; final acceptance releases retention, subject to the contract.
- Professionals need adequate professional-liability insurance and must not accept duties outside their competence. Liability can be contractual, tortious or statutory; it is not unlimited.
Worked example
An architect’s appointment excludes site supervision. The contractor installs the wrong membrane. The client cannot simply hold the architect liable for the defect if the exclusion was clear and accepted; the client’s remedy runs primarily against the contractor, while the architect remains responsible for the design and any duties actually assumed.
Traps
Relying on oral instructions; confusing provisional and final acceptance; assuming the lowest tender is compliant; and signing a collateral warranty that expands duties beyond the appointment.