In late September, the government released a report that followed on two Ontario lawyers' mandate to review the Construction Lien Act. It focused on the construction lien/holdback regime, promptness of payment and modernization of construction dispute resolution including the use of adjudication.
The broad-ranging recommendations – more than 100 of them – address lienability; the preservation, perfection and expiry of liens; holdback and substantial performance; summary proceedings; prompt payment; and adjudication.
If the report's recommendations come to pass, "The construction bar will have to make fundamental and profound changes," says Bruce Reynolds of Borden Ladner Gervais LLP, one of the lawyers mandated to review the Act. "There will be no more scheduling at the convenience of counsel, for example."
Lexpert contributor Julius Melnitzer reports at www.lexpert.ca.
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