Ontario’s Attorney General says the province is about to embark on a comprehensive review of the Construction Act.

Doug Downey announced the news at the Toronto Construction Association’s annual general meeting on February 27.

He indicated the review would be led by construction lawyer Duncan Glaholt, and would unfold in two phases with a completion date of the fall. The object of the review, said Downey, is to examine and enhance the act to ensure it aligns with the construction industry’s evolving needs.

“In the spirit of the 2016 report which led to the modernization of the Ontario Construction Act, I’m announcing here that the government is now embarking on a targeted two-phased review process of that statute,” Downey told the audience.

The first phase of the review will focus on potential enhancements to the act. Doing so, Downey said, is critical for laying the groundwork for substantive changes, with a focus on areas that may benefit from modernization.

The second phase of the review will involve stakeholder consultations to review the proposed amendments. The goal of this part of the process is to ensure the revised act addresses the concerns and requirements of all parties involved.

Downey acknowledged that while the act has been an important piece of legislation for the industry, it’s not perfect.

“We’ve heard there are areas that we need to fine tune and adjust,” he said. “For example, issues arose related to the minimum bonding requirements for large non-public-private partnerships. Since 2018, the Ontario Construction Act has mandated surety bonding for public construction projects with a price of $500,000 or more while creating an exception for P3 projects. But we recognize the construction market has changed. It has shifted. More and more projects are being delivered in the province using non-P3s and we understand the level of bonding required for these non-P3 projects can threaten the effective timely delivery of priority non-P3 projects.

“So last year we made amendments to the Construction Act again that allowed the government to lower this minimum bonding requirement. This will protect the public and broader public sector infrastructure project owners, subcontractors, workers and suppliers by allowing the project to proceed smoothly and on time.”

Glaholt, meanwhile, is the founder of construction law firm Glaholt Bowles LLP.

He has been named one of Canada's leading lawyers in the Construction Law category in the Lexpert/American Lawyer Media "Leading 500 Lawyers" in each year since inception. He is certified as a Specialist in Construction Law by the Law Society of Upper Canada.