S E R V I C E M O D E L S
Three service models delivering specialist commercial and dispute capability
The three models provide different levels of specialist support, involvement and recovery capability across live projects and, where required, into formal recovery. Together, they are designed to strengthen contractual control, protect commercial position and ensure entitlement is preserved with the level of input the operating environment requires.
M O D E L S E L E C T I O N
Which model is most likely to suit your operating environment?
The three models are structured for different operating environments, reflecting differences in project pressure, internal capability and dispute exposure. The overview below shows where each model is most commercially appropriate, depending on the level of support, continuity and specialist involvement required.
Protect
Legalbuild’s core model.
It is designed for contractors who need structured contractual governance and commercial oversight across live projects, so entitlement is protected early without formal dispute proceedings being a constant feature.
The focus: maintaining contractual discipline, strengthening payment position and building evidential strength while project remains live.
Protect + Resolve
Legalbuild’s continuity model.
It is designed for contractors that need continuity from live delivery into formal recovery, so entitlement is protected early and the recovery position remains coherent if escalation becomes necessary.
The focus: preserving leverage, strengthening the recovery position and maintaining procedural continuity while underlying facts remain live.
Enhance
Legalbuild’s highest involvement model.
It is designed for contractors that need deeper project-level support, extending Protect + Resolve where project demands require closer ongoing involvement.
The focus: carrying project-level commercial and evidential burden while protecting entitlement through deeper ongoing support.
| Comparison area | Protect Live project protection | Protect + Resolve Live support into recovery | Enhance Deeper project support and evidence control |
|---|---|---|---|
| Primary purpose | To strengthen contractual and commercial discipline while the project remains live, so entitlement is protected before position weakens. | To protect contractual and commercial position during delivery and carry that position forward into formal recovery where escalation becomes necessary. | To provide deeper specialist involvement built on the protection and recovery continuity of Protect and Protect + Resolve, with closer support across records, drafting, chronology, valuation support and evidential structure. |
| Best suited to | Projects requiring earlier control over notices, payment position, variations, delay-related pressure points and final account posture. | Projects where disputes are emerging, formal recovery is becoming likely, or management wants continuity between live-project support and formal proceedings. | Projects requiring closer factual review, stronger substantiation, heavier drafting input or more intensive involvement at project level. |
| Commercial environment | A commercially manageable environment where stronger protection is needed, but deeper external deployment is not yet required. | A more contentious or higher-risk environment where payment friction, dispute exposure or recovery risk is materially greater. | A pressured operating environment where internal teams are stretched or management wants more of the commercial and evidential burden carried externally. |
| Level of Legalbuild involvement | Embedded and responsive, with focus on maintaining contractual discipline and commercial control during live delivery. | Embedded during delivery, then structured to continue into recovery without loss of momentum or adviser reset. | More intensive and closer to the facts, building on the live-project protection and recovery continuity of the earlier models with deeper involvement in supporting material, project mechanics and evidential preparation. |
| Dispute / recovery position | Not the primary purpose of the model, though the aim is to preserve a stronger position if recovery later becomes necessary. | Built specifically to continue into negotiation, mediation, adjudication or arbitration support where required. | Includes the same continuity into formal recovery reflected in Protect + Resolve, but with deeper project-level substantiation rather than proceedings support alone. |
| Depth of substantiation support | Reviewed and guided to maintain coherence, procedural compliance and commercial strength during delivery. | Developed in a form capable of supporting both live management and later recovery if matters escalate. | A central area of focus, including records, chronology, instructions, measurement, valuation support, drafting and evidential structure. |
| Typical reason clients choose it | They want stronger specialist protection during live delivery in a measured, commercially disciplined form. | They want one specialist function protecting position during delivery and carrying that position into formal recovery if required. | They want more of the practical commercial and evidential burden carried by Legalbuild because project pressure, speed or complexity is materially higher. |
D E T A I L E D C O M P A R I S O N
How the three models differ in practice
The comparison below shows how the three models differ in level of support, degree of involvement and depth of specialist input, with all three built on the foundation of Legalbuild’s core Protect model.
C O M M E R C I A L S T R U C T U R E
Predictable support with continuity of cost
Legalbuild’s support is structured on a retained basis, with known monthly cost and a defined level of specialist involvement. This gives clients continuity across live delivery and recovery readiness, clearer budgeting visibility and fewer of the shock-cost decisions that often arise when external support is introduced only after position has already weakened. It also provides a more controlled commercial structure in which specialist input is already in place as pressure begins to build, rather than being introduced later through fragmented reactive instruction.
L E G A L B U I L D E T H O S
One underlying approach, delivered at different levels of involvement
All three models are built around the same underlying objective: protecting entitlement early, strengthening commercial control during delivery and ensuring the position is properly prepared if formal recovery becomes necessary. The difference lies in the level of involvement, continuity and project-level support required by the operating environment.
N E X T S T E P S
Speak with Legalbuild
For discussions about live projects, commercial risk exposure or potential engagement, speak with Legalbuild directly. Legalbuild can advise on the model most appropriate to the operating environment and level of support required.