In commercial arbitration, a claim number is only as strong as the records behind it. A round figure may look confident in a board note, but an arbitral tribunal will ask how it was calculated, which documents support it, and whether the loss was mitigated. Arithmetic has cross-examination of its own.
Start by separating claim heads. Principal unpaid amount, price adjustment, liquidated damages, delay costs, replacement purchase, demobilisation expense, interest, and consequential loss should not be placed into one large basket. Each head needs a contractual basis, factual basis, calculation method, and supporting document set.
Invoices and ledgers are the starting point, not the finish line. The team should match invoices to purchase orders, delivery notes, acceptance records, tax invoices, payment follow-ups, debit notes, and accounting entries. If a payment was partly received or adjusted, the calculation should show it clearly. Hidden adjustments are not clever; they are future exhibits.
For delay or disruption claims, chronology matters. Identify the obligation, due date, actual performance date, cause of delay, notices issued, extensions granted, and cost impact. A claim that simply says "delay caused loss" is usually too thin. Link each period of delay to documents and consequences.
Mitigation evidence should be collected early. If the company bought replacement goods, hired another contractor, redeployed resources, or reduced loss in another way, preserve those records. If mitigation was not possible, explain why. A damages claim should not behave as if the business sat in a chair waiting for loss to grow.
Interest calculations require discipline. Identify contractual interest, statutory or tribunal-discretionary interest, start date, end date, rate, compounding assumption, and tax implications where relevant. Even when the final rate is contested, the working should be transparent.
Finance and legal teams should work together. Finance understands ledgers, ageing, write-offs, provisions, and internal approvals. Legal understands burden, pleadings, admissibility, and how the other side may attack the number. A claim prepared by only one team usually shows the missing half.
The final claim schedule should be readable. It should include claim head, amount, document reference, calculation formula, assumptions, and evidentiary gaps. The objective is not to bury the other side in spreadsheets. The objective is to make the number hard to dismiss.
Assumptions should be stated openly. If a calculation uses average margin, replacement price, market rate, exchange rate, or estimated labour cost, the basis should be identified. The tribunal may accept, reduce, or reject an assumption, but it should not have to hunt for it. Hidden assumptions make even a fair claim look improvised.
The team should also test the opponent's likely attack. Are there missing delivery acknowledgements? Were invoices disputed earlier? Did the claimant continue performance after the alleged breach? Was there a settlement communication or credit note? These questions do not weaken the claim. They prepare it for the room in which it must survive.
Version control matters. Every claim schedule should have a date, preparer, source files, and change log. When numbers move, the reason should be traceable. Nothing unnerves a damages discussion faster than three spreadsheets with the same title and different totals.
Reconciliation with accounts is useful before filing. If the arbitration claim differs from ledger balances, provisions, write-offs, or tax records, the reason should be explained internally before the other side finds the mismatch.
AGS Consulting assists businesses and counsel in converting business records into disciplined arbitration claim schedules and evidence maps. For support with claim quantification, contact AGS Consulting.
FAQs
What records support arbitration claim quantification?
Invoices, ledgers, purchase orders, delivery records, payment follow-ups, correspondence, and calculation working papers.
Should all losses be grouped together?
No. Separate each claim head and connect it to the contract, facts, calculation method, and documents.
Why is mitigation evidence important?
It shows whether the claimant acted reasonably to reduce loss and supports the credibility of the damages claim.
Who should prepare the claim schedule?
Finance and legal teams should work together so the numbers are accurate and the evidence is tribunal-ready.