Free checklist
An interest claim needs three things established: that a sum was owed, when it became due and which statutory rate governs. Each has its own documentary trail.
12 items across 4 categories. This is a general guide for a typical claim of this type, not an exhaustive or jurisdiction-specific list. Confirm exact evidentiary requirements with counsel before submission.
Accrual start date is the most contested element. Dated demand letters and a clean payment ledger fix the date; without them the accrual period is argued rather than proven.
A checklist is only useful if you know why each item is on it. Reviewers do not ask for records to be thorough; they ask because each one answers a specific question that the calculation on its own cannot.
What it proves. A contract interest rate, where enforceable, usually beats the statutory rate. This is the first document to check because it can change the answer entirely.
Where it comes from. Your contract file. Read the payment article and any general conditions incorporated by reference.
What it proves. Fixes the principal and, critically, the date each amount became due. Interest runs from due dates, not from the date you decided to claim.
Where it comes from. Accounting, with the approval dates and any owner certifications intact.
What it proves. Establishes that you performed, which is what makes the sum owed rather than disputed. A disputed sum may not accrue interest at all in some states.
Where it comes from. Signed delivery tickets, certificates of completion, or the owner's own acceptance correspondence.
What it proves. In several states interest accrues from written demand rather than from breach, which can move the accrual date by months.
Where it comes from. Correspondence file. Keep proof of delivery, since the date received can matter more than the date sent.
What it proves. Partial payments change the principal over time and interest must be recalculated from each payment date rather than run on the original balance.
Where it comes from. Accounts receivable, as a dated transaction ledger rather than a summary balance.
What it proves. Preserves the claim and, in many jurisdictions, marks an accrual or tolling date.
Where it comes from. Your lien filings and their recording dates, plus any statutory preliminary notices.
What it proves. Establishes what the other side can assess against you, which is the offset side of the netting. It also sets whether LDs are the exclusive remedy for late completion.
Where it comes from. The contract. Check whether the daily rate is a genuine pre-estimate of loss, since an unenforceable penalty is a real defence.
What it proves. Stops the LD clock. The date of substantial completion is contested more often than the daily rate is.
Where it comes from. The architect's or owner's certificate. If none was issued, beneficial occupancy evidence substitutes.
What it proves. Documents what was actually assessed and withheld, as opposed to what was threatened.
Where it comes from. Owner correspondence and the payment application where the withholding first appears.
What it proves. Decides which state's interest rate, accrual rule and compounding convention apply. On multi-state work this is not obvious.
Where it comes from. The contract's governing law article.
What it proves. Rates change and several states float against a federal benchmark on a published reset schedule. Citing the rate for the wrong period is a common and avoidable error.
Where it comes from. The state statute or the court administrator's published rate table for each year of accrual. ClaimDuke's state rules reference carries the citation and a link to the official source.
What it proves. Many states impose a higher interest rate and sometimes fee-shifting on late payment to contractors, which can exceed the general statutory rate.
Where it comes from. The state's prompt payment statute for public or private work, whichever applies.
These are the omissions that cost real money, in rough order of how often they come up.
Interest usually runs from a specific triggering event: breach, written demand, or the date the sum became liquidated. The date is contested more often than the rate and it needs a dated document behind it.
Floating statutory rates reset on a published schedule. Running one rate across three years overstates or understates the figure and is easy for the other side to check.
Interest has to be recalculated from each payment date. Running the original balance forward to today inflates the claim and damages your credibility on the rest of it.
Many states impose a higher rate and sometimes fee-shifting, on late payment to contractors. Defaulting to the general statutory rate can leave real money behind.
Most US states apply simple interest to prejudgment awards by statute. A minority permit periodic compounding and an enforceable contract rate may specify it. The calculator supports both, but check the governing state before choosing.
In settlement they routinely are. Whether they legally offset depends on the contract and on entitlement to the underlying delay claim, so the calculator shows both accruals separately as well as the net position.
The state statute or the court administrator's published table, for each year of accrual rather than just the current one. ClaimDuke's 50-state + DC reference carries the rate, the accrual rule and a link to the official source for every state.
The ClaimDuke calculator carries this same checklist. Tick what you already have and add your own items and they carry through to the Excel workbook, the Word document and the PDF report you export, so what you hand over shows exactly which records are in the file and which are still outstanding.
Free to calculate, with a free one-page summary. Paid reports add your branding, a live-formula Excel workbook and the cited methodology behind every line.
Evidentiary expectations and the underlying entitlement both vary by jurisdiction. ClaimDuke carries a cited reference for all 50 states + DC covering statutory interest, actual cash value and labor depreciation, delay-claim limits and injury liability.
