Speaking before an audience made up of contractors, local government officials, and lawyers, DivinaLaw Senior Partner Atty. Enrique V. Dela Cruz, Jr. recently discussed the advantages of having a Dispute Review Board (DRB) involved in a construction project and how disputes arising from noncompliance of Environmental, Social, and Governance (ESG) standards may be resolved by DRBs.
“How do DRBs help resolve ESG conflicts? We now have early intervention —even before an actual dispute arises, the parties can prevent it. There is also expert evaluation —parties are guided by people who are there monitoring the problem first-hand. They can advise the owner or the contractor when there is non-compliance and how to resolve such non-compliance. Because there is a monitoring group who is part of the contract, we promote compliance not only with ESG but also with the provisions of the contract.”
Atty. Dela Cruz was one of the speakers of a two-day forum organized by the International Federation of Asian and Western Pacific Contractors’ Associations (IFAWPCA) and hosted by the Philippine Constructors Association.
Established in 1956, IFAWPCA is one of the oldest international construction federations in the region and it currently has 17 member countries, including Philippines, Bangladesh, Bhutan, Cambodia, Hong Kong, India, Indonesia, Japan, Korea, Malaysia, Maldives, Mongolia, Nepal, Singapore, Sri Lanka, Taiwan, and Thailand.
Atty. Dela Cruz is the head of DivinaLaw’s arbitration practice group. DivinaLaw is an accredited provider of Alternative Dispute Resolution services by the Office for Alternative Dispute Resolution, an attached agency of the Department of Justice in the Philippines.
