Articles 2021

Not all warranty provisions are created equal when it comes to construction contracts. Individual warranty provisions may vary in length of time, scope, and the degree of fault required to trigger those obligations.

These are rapidly evolving and legally unprecedented circumstances which have had, and will continue to have, significant impacts on construction projects. This article considers the potential applicability of force majeure provisions and the doctrine of frustration in the current circumstances.

Tarion Warranty Corporation (“Tarion”) has issued a number of advisories regarding the suspension of certain new home warranty program processes.

In view of COVID-19, on March 20, 2020, the Attorney General of Ontario ordered the suspension of limitation periods and other procedural time periods. The Order is retroactively dated to March 16, 2020.

A summary of important legal information for Ontario businesses in construction to keep in mind during the COVID-19 / coronavirus crisis.

The lag between a subcontractor completing its work on a project and the subcontractor being paid has been a longstanding source of tension in the construction industry. In the past, subcontractors typically had to wait for the contractor to be paid by the owner before money would flow down to them and, even then, there was no guarantee that they would be paid within weeks or even months of completing work on a project.

Force majeure provisions are often overlooked, but when drafted and invoked properly, they can be useful risk allocation tools. In the construction context, they can be used to allocate risk in case of a shortage of raw materials, extreme weather or a labour strike, among other events. Force majeure clauses excuse a party’s performance under a contract in full or in part, to the extent that the failure to perform is due to certain circumstances outside of the party’s control.