Charlie
Full blodied contractor I can only but imagine what you mean.
Forensic I believe is derived from the word forum where in ancient Rome the law courts were located. It is very closely related to the law. The term forensic planner is therefore more closely related to the nature of lawyers, tribunals and courts.
From this I would suggest that forensic planning skills would be primarily called upon when the formal mechanism for dispute resolution are activated under the contract.
My expectation is that the normal claims arising from a contract should and could be dealt with adequately by an experienced planner.
The forensic planner really is a sub breed of a planner with the dexterity and skill to search out the vital contemporary information which can influence the decision positively in legal proceedings. The majority of us planners have neither the patience, experience or skill to successfully undertake the task.
I would advocate that a good forensic planner is not a dabbler but a practitioner in an extremely commercial environment.
Clive

Charlie
In my limited experince the forensic planner is rarely involved in the daily mundane EOT claims. His role usually comes much later when the project runs substantially over the completion date and parties cannot agree an entitlement.
The forensic planner is then brought in to review the total programme, delays claimed, and to establish an accurate as built programme from the contemporary records available and his in depth experience of the construction process.
Many years ago I undertook this task for a clients legal advisor on a piling project.
The legal advisor had received during the pleadings an as built programme from the contractor identifying the cause and affect of late information etc. The legal advisor was defending the position from a standpoint of law, time bar etc and was not relying on the contemporary construction information. The legal advisor believed he would win the arbitration on points of law.
I was asked to review the contractors as built programme and was offered the opportunity to review the daily site diary signed by the COW and site foreman. From these contemporary records it became clear that the piling plant was either not on site or had broken down for over 50% of the final project period. This fact had been overlooked by the legal team. When this information was developed and presented to the contractor he was unable to refute the findings as he had provided the record himself when the works progressed.
While this is a very simple example of the role of a forensic planner it provides an indication of how he can provide input to a claim defence.
Clive

Dear All,

It’s interesting to know that there is such thing as "Forensic Planner"...despite being in the oil & gas industry for quite sometime. Maybe becoz I don’t have experience dealing with major contract dispute or arbitration case..

Thanks

norzul

Hi Rahul Mulik,

The expert witness is an exception to the exclusionary rule and is permitted to give opinion evidence. In civil litigation this has statutory authority.

Where a person is called as an expert witness in any civil proceedings, his opinion on any relevant matter on which he is qualified to give expert evidence shall be admissible in evidence.

Kind regards;

Marcio Eduardo
Rio de Janeiro - Brazil

See what do a FORENSIC PLANNER job requires:

To assist with major claims reports and contract analysis.
Extensive experience in Retrospective claims, Critical Path Method (CPM), EOT Claims, Time / Delay Analysis, and preparation of Expert Witness reports is essential to be considered for this role.
Have general planning and scheduling experience on large projects.

Kind regards,

Marcio Eduardo
Rio de Janeiro - Brazil