Should I Stay Or Should I Go? | Construction Disputes Industry Special

Moving from mainstream construction into claims, disputes, and expert witness work can be a good move for some people and a bad move for others. It’s not just “better paid QS/PM work” it’s a different world, with its own pressures, rewards, personalities and career pathways. Here we look at the pros and cons.

Why you should move into construction claims and disputes 

1.    Intellectually challenging and varied work

If you enjoy the “why” and “how” behind a project’s commercial and time outcomes, this field is rich territory:

• You dive into contract clauses, correspondence, programmes, cost records and site evidence
• Every case is a kind of forensic puzzle: what really happened, who is responsible, and what is the financial and time impact?
• You’ll work on a wide range of projects – infrastructure, buildings, energy, utilities, international work – often more varied than staying with a single employer or sector

For people who are bored of routine valuations and monthly reports, the analytical depth can be a major plus

2.    Strong earning potential (especially at senior levels)

In many markets, disputes and expert services are premium offerings, and fees reflect that. Over a career, this can mean:

• Higher charge-out rates than general QS/PM roles
• Attractive salaries in specialist consultancies, often with bonus structures tied to utilisation
• At the expert witness level, very strong day rates, equity, and a high degree of professional prestige

It’s not instant, you still need to prove yourself – but the ceiling is often higher than typical project-side roles

3.    Long-term career longevity 

Construction can be physically and mentally draining, especially in site-based roles. Claims and dispute work:

• Is usually more office / hybrid based
• Relies heavily on accumulated knowledge, judgement and credibility rather than physical stamina
• Can be very suitable for the later stages of a career, when a deep track record and reputation for fairness and insight are at a premium

Many respected experts continue in practice well beyond the age at which site-based roles feel sustainable.

4.    Exposure to high-profile projects and legal teams 

Working on disputes often means:

• Involvement in landmark projects – major infrastructure, complex engineering works, international mega-projects
• Close interaction with top-tier law firms and barrister
• Insight into how major organisations manage risk, strategy and settlement

If you’re curious about the intersection between engineering, money and law, this exposure can be fascinating and is rarely available in standard delivery roles.

5.   Opportunity to build a personal professional brand

Within this niche, you can build a strong personal name:

• Publishing articles, speaking at conferences, contributing to professional bodies
• Building a reputation as “the person to call” for a particular type of dispute or sector
• As you progress into expert roles, your CV and track record become assets in themselves – they help firms win work and give you bargaining power

If you like the idea of being recognised as a subject-matter expert, this path supports that more directly than many other roles.

Why you shouldn’t move into construction claims and disputes 

All of the above sounds attractive – but this area absolutely isn’t for everyone.

1. The work is adversarial and can be stressful 

On a good project, QS/PM/engineering roles are collaborative: everyone ultimately wants successful delivery.
On a dispute:

• Someone feels wronged and wants money and/or time
• The other side often resists hard
• You may find yourself dealing with aggressive correspondence, tight deadlines, last-minute data dumps, and strong personalities.

Stress can come from:

• Intense peaks of workload around submissions, hearings or adjudications.
• Needing to be extremely precise – small errors can be ruthlessly exposed by the other side
• The emotional charge of clients who have a lot to lose

If you dislike confrontation, high-stakes arguments, or living in grey areas where nothing is clear-cut, this environment can be draining.

2. Heavy emphasis on desk-based, documents-driven work  

Some people genuinely miss the buzz of site:

• Day-to-day, you will spend a lot of time with emails, programmes, spreadsheets, ledgers, witness statements and reports
• Site visits still happen, but they’re usually targeted fact-finding rather than ongoing project participation
• If you love physically seeing construction happen, working with trades, and being out and about, you may find the office-heavy nature of disputes work unsatisfying

This isn’t a problem if you enjoy analytical, desk-based work but it’s a real downside for more practical, “boots on the ground” personalities.

3. High expectations for written communication and detail

The standard of written work in claims and expert roles is noticeably higher than in most project roles:

• Reports may be scrutinised by judges, arbitrators, lawyers and opposing experts
• Poor grammar, unclear reasoning, or sloppy referencing can undermine the whole case
• You’ll be expected to write clearly, logically, concisely and often under time pressure

If writing is a genuine weak point and you’re not prepared to improve it, you may struggle. Being “good on site” or “strong technically” is not enough if you can’t set things out clearly on paper.

4. You may feel you’re no longer “building things”

A common complaint from people who move into disputes is that they miss creating:

• In construction delivery roles, you can point at a finished structure and say, “I helped build that.”
• In disputes, you’re often dealing with projects that have gone wrong – delays, overspends, defects, breakdowns of relationships.
• The job becomes more about untangling problems than delivering solutions on the ground.

Some people thrive on this investigative, corrective role. Others find it negative or demoralising, especially when most of their time is spent on conflict rather than construction.

5.    Long route to becoming a recognised ‘expert’

Moving into a specialist consultancy does not make you an expert witness overnight:

• You’ll likely start as an assistant or consultant supporting more senior staff
• Building credibility as a named expert can take years of case work, plus:
  • Additional qualifications (e.g. construction law, arbitration, expert evidence courses)
  • Being appointed, which happens with a lot of business development
  • Experience of giving evidence and being cross-examined
  • A consistent record of impartial, defensible opinions.

If your main goal is fast status or quick money, you may be disappointed. The path can be rewarding, but it is not short.

Conclusion 

If you’re considering making a move, treat it as a specialism, not just a pay rise: if the nature of the work genuinely appeals to you, it can be an extremely rewarding, high-impact career. If it doesn’t, you’re better off enhancing your claims and disputes awareness while staying in a role you actually enjoy.
If you’d like to explore whether construction claims and disputes could be the right fit for you or understand how your background might translate into this niche, the team at Maxim Recruitment regularly advises professionals at all stages of their careers. A confidential discussion can help clarify your options, identify suitable pathways, and avoid making a move that looks attractive on paper but doesn’t suit you in reality.

Nilam Modhwadia
Senior Recruitment Consultant
Maxim Recruitment
LinkedIn

Nilam is a Senior Recruitment Consultant based at our head office in Leicester, where she leads the UK and international Construction Disputes division. She specialises in recruiting top-tier professionals across the construction disputes sector; including claims consultants, quantum experts, delay analysts, and dispute resolution specialists. Nilam partners with premium, and often exclusive, employer clients, connecting them with exceptional talent to drive project success.