Pay-When-Paid Clauses: Are They Legal in Manitoba?

We all know that in a typical construction project, payment flows down the contractual chain. The Owner pays the Prime Contractor; the Prime Contractor pays Sub-Contractors and suppliers; Sub-Contractors pay Sub-sub-Contractors and so on.

Perhaps as a result of this practical reality, it has become tacitly accepted in the construction industry that those down the contractual chain receive payment after the person above them receives payment. (Read more...)

Dangers Lurking Beneath:  The Risk of Subsurface Conditions

The success or failure of various types of civil earth works projects can depend on knowing with reasonable certainty what lies below the ground.  

Is it clay?  Is it rock?  Is it frozen? Is there too much or too little?    If the contract says one thing but it turns out to be something else, who is responsible?  If the contract does not say anything but the contractor encounters something unexpected, who is responsible?

(Read more...)