This program contains 60 minutes of Substantive Content.

The Construction Act’s new provisions have been in force for one full year. Adjudication is gaining momentum as a fast-track dispute resolution mechanism for construction disputes in Ontario. Join this program to review the Act’s key updates and review Ontario’s first year of adjudication from the perspectives of both adjudicator and counsel.

Ontario adjudicator and litigator Chad Kopach of Blaney McMurtry will be joined by construction lawyers Andrea Lee of Glaholt Bowles LLP and Karen Groulx of Dentons (Canada) LLP. The panel will review:

1. prompt payment and adjudication scenarios,
2. key updates in the Act, and
3. early lessons learned from the new adjudication regime.

This one-hour virtual panel presentation will be followed by two 15-minute breakout sessions led by expert witness sponsors to dig deeper into issues they encounter: Chetan Sehgal of BDO Canada LLP and Natalia Lehkyj of BRG.

Toronto lawyers with clients in the construction or real estate industries will be well-served to become familiar with adjudication as it takes flight in Ontario.

Panelists:

• Chad Kopach, Blaney McMurtry
  For almost two decades, clients have relied on Chad Kopach to help them achieve practical and timely litigation solutions. Chad is Certified as a Specialist in Construction Law by the Law Society of Ontario, and is a Certified Adjudicator under Ontario’s Construction Act. Chad’s strategic thinking helps his clients navigate the pitfalls of construction dispute, and leverage the special lien, trust and prompt payment remedies available to the construction industry. His clients appreciate the attention he gives to their claims.
  
  Chad represents all levels of the construction pyramid, from owners to material suppliers. He also represents secured lenders in priority disputes. Chad has experience in negotiating and drafting construction contracts, and his clients rely on his experience to properly structure their agreements.
  
  Chad is certified as an Adjudicator by ODACC (the Ontario Dispute Adjudication for Construction Contracts), the authorized nominating authority under the Construction Act. As an adjudicator, Chad is tasked with establishing the procedure for Claimants and Respondents to submit their dispute to adjudication, carefully considering the parties’ positions, and coming to a timely determination that is ultimately enforceable by the courts.
  
  Chad’s litigation experience extends to mortgage remedies, contract and shareholder disputes, and litigation under the Bankruptcy and Insolvency Act and the Companies’ Creditors Arrangement Act. He has appeared at all levels of court in Ontario helping his clients obtain and retain what is theirs. Chad reacts quickly, and has acted on injunctions and other applications to stop the misuse of confidential intellectual property, to freeze fraudsters’ assets, and to set aside transfers of real property pursuant to the Fraudulent Conveyances Act.
  
  Chad is also trusted by professionals, and regularly defends negligence claims against engineers and lawyers.
  Read his bio
• Andrea Lee, Glaholt Bowles LLP
  Andrea Lee is certified as a Specialist in Construction Law by the Law Society of Ontario, and a partner of Glaholt Bowles LLP.
  
  Andrea obtained her Bachelor of Architecture from the University of Toronto and Bachelor of Law from Queen’s University.
  
  Andrea has experience acting on behalf of owners, design professionals, contractors, sureties and insurers on all scales of projects throughout Canada in litigation and arbitrations involving liens, trusts, bonds, delay claims and professional negligence. Andrea also provides advice with respect to construction contracts and professional design agreements.
  
  Andrea is a co-founder of the Construction Law course at Queen's University and is the instructor of Construction Law as part of Osgoode's LL.M program. She is also a skills instructor at The Advocates' Society. Andrea regularly speaks at programs offered by the Canadian Bar Association, the Ontario Bar Association, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Ontario Association of Architects, CanBIM and REALPAC. She has published articles in legal and industry newsletters and co-authored chapters focused on design professionals in Halsbury’s Laws of Canada, Construction, and Review of Construction Law: Recent Developments.
  
  Andrea completed her LEED certification in 2009. She is the 2020-2021 Chair of the OBA, Construction and Infrastructure Law Section Executive, and a Fellow of the Canadian College of Construction Lawyers. She is also a member of the national CanBIM Project Delivery & Risk Management Think Tank, the Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, the Canadian Association of Women in Construction and The Advocates’ Society. Andrea is a mentor to young lawyers through the OBA mentorship program. Andrea has been recognized by Lexpert, Benchmark Litigation and Best Lawyers.
  Read her bio
• Karen Groulx, Dentons (Canada) LLP
  Karen is a partner at Dentons Canada LLP in our Construction, Litigation and Real Estate groups. Her practice includes negotiation and drafting of various types of construction documents on behalf of owners and general contractors as well as dispute resolution and litigation involving the awarding of contracts, construction liens and related proceedings on behalf of owners, general contractors and subcontractors as well as mortgagees. Karen handles trust and bond claims, negligence claims and contract claims including claims relating to construction defects, product liability and other disputes such as professional negligence claims, engineers and architects liability cases.
  
  Karen has particular expertise in E-Discovery in the context of litigation matters as well as in the context of the preparation of records retention and records management policies.
  
  Karen is a founding member of the Sedona Canada Working Group on Electronic Document Retention and Production in Canada. Sedona Canada is a member of the Sedona Conference®, an internationally recognized nonpartisan law and policy think-tank based in Sedona, Arizona. She was also a member of the Electronic Discovery Sub-Committee of the Task Force on the Discovery Process in Ontario, which produced the Guidelines of the Discovery of Electronic Documents in Ontario. Karen was a member of the Ontario Bar Association Executive for Construction and Infrastructure Law Section. She is a member of The Advocates’ Society and has co-chaired Construction Advocacy Programs for The Advocates’ Society for the past couple of years.
  Read her bio

Moderator:

• Ivan Merrow, Glaholt Bowles LLP
  Ivan Merrow is a construction lawyer and litigator at Glaholt LLP. His practice focuses on providing exceptional legal service to organizations and individuals in the construction industry. He represents clients at every level of the construction supply chain, including developers, owners, general contractors, subcontractors, sureties, engineers, and architects.
  
  Ivan most frequently acts in disputes involving contracts, liens, trusts, bonds, delay claims, deficiencies and professional negligence. Ivan seeks to resolve disputes efficiently through a combination of advocacy, alternative dispute resolution and negotiation. He has appeared at all levels of court in Ontario, in insolvency proceedings under the BIA and CCAA, and has acted in ad hoc arbitrations arising from large-scale infrastructure projects.
  
  In addition to his law degree, Ivan holds an M.B.A. degree from Queen’s University. When clients require proactive advice relating to construction contracts, procurement processes and design agreements, Ivan provides business-oriented insight through the lens of a litigator.
  
  Outside of law practice, Ivan serves as a Real Estate and Young Lawyers Committee member of the Toronto Lawyers Association as well as an executive of both the Central Young Lawyers’ Division of the Ontario Bar Association and the Construction Law Section of the Canadian Bar Association. He regularly writes articles and speaks on issues related to professionalism, civil procedure and construction law. During his university studies, Ivan won multiple awards for his academic success in legal ethics, operations, technical writing and information technology. He maintains an avid interest in technology and innovation, especially as they relate to the construction and legal industries.
  Read his bio

Program details

Thursday, October 15, 2020
4:00 – 5:30 p.m.
ZOOM - 2 step registration. You will receive the details to join in your confirmation email.

 
This program contains 60 minutes of Substantive Content.

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• Members: $50.00 + HST 
• Member Licensing Candidates and New Calls: $20.00 + HST
• Friends of the TLA: $120.00 + HST 
• Non-Members: $120.00 + HST

Complimentary tickets are available for Law School Students. Please contact Sandra Porter at events@tlaonline.ca before October 13.

No refunds after October 8, 2020. An administrative fee of $25.00 will be applied to all cancellations.  

Many thanks to our generous Sponsors!

The views and opinion expressed by speakers are their own and may not represent the views and opinions of the Toronto Lawyers Association.

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