Most legal practitioners shudder at the thought of letters of intent and the potential they have to cause disputes. While there may be well intended practical reasons, such as mobilisation of a contractor and getting the project moving, often they are more trouble than they are worth - particularly when parties have gone to the effort of agreeing complex specifications and programmes and are actually very close to agreeing the amendments to a standard form or bespoke contract. As a basic starting point for disputes, parties often cannot decide whether the letter of intent is the contract, whether other terms have been incorporated, or whether all of that has been superseded by a standard form that may or may not have been signed. This seems to be a real shame when there are so many other salient and difficult problems that have to be managed during a live project.
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