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ARTICLE · 19 NOVEMBER 2015

Cash Or Credit? – Posting Security For Liens Post-Stuart Olson

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The claim for lien ties up the owner's land, and allows the unpaid supplier to collect some of its debt from the sale of the owner's land if the debt goes unsatisfied.

CanadaReal Estate and Construction
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The Supreme Court's decision in Stuart Olson Dominion Construction Ltd. v. Structal Heavy Steel, 2015 SCC 43 ("Stuart Olson") addresses the interplay between the two Construction Lien Act remedies available to an unpaid supplier on a construction project: the claim for lien and the claim for breach of trust.

The claim for lien ties up the owner's land, and allows the unpaid supplier to collect some of its debt from the sale of the owner's land if the debt goes unsatisfied.

The breach of trust claim allows the claimant to sue the debtor, and if the debtor received funds on account of work done by the claimant but used the funds to pay overhead (for example), the trust remedy pins personal liability on anyone who caused the debtor to breach its trust obligations.

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