Ontario’s updated Construction Act could set the bar for the rest of Canada to follow
The Ontario government’s new legislation to modernize and expand the Construction Lien Act — now to be known as the Construction Act (hinting at its broader mandate) — sets out to improve cash flow efficiency between owners, contractors and sub-contractors by both (a) setting timelines for the prompt payment of invoices and (b) speeding up the resolution of payment-related disputes through an adjudication process. This is the first major update to the Act in more than 30 years and it appears to apply across the board, from relatively small projects to large megaprojects such as the major transit expansions planned for the Greater Toronto and Hamilton Area (GTHA) in the coming years.