The Court held that the reference to 'practical completion' in a clause limiting post-completion reference dates under the SOP Act operates by reference to the objective fact of practical completion, not the issuance of a superintendent's certificate under the contract. Where the contractor itself asserted that practical completion occurred on a particular date and the superintendent subsequently accepted that date, the contractor was bound by that position and could not argue that practical completion had not yet occurred merely because no valid certificate had been issued. Consequently, Payment Claim No 16 was served after the last available periodic reference date had already been used, rendering it invalid and the adjudication determination void for jurisdictional error.
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