Justice Delayed Is Justice Denied: Alberta's Proposed Prompt Payment Legislation

Introduction

The Alberta government is signaling major changes to the construction industry with its proposed prompt payment legislation. Bill 37, the Builders' Lien (Prompt Payment) Amendment Act, 2020¹, passed a second reading on October 28, 2020 and is expected to come into force in July 2021 along with detailed regulations.

Here are some of the significant changes Bill 37 would introduce:

• short timelines (28 days) for paying "proper invoices" (discussed below)
• prohibiting 'pay-when-paid' clauses;
• a new, faster statutory adjudication system for contract disputes;
• longer deadlines to register liens (from 45 to 60 days for most projects);
• increased minimum amount for a lien (from $300 to $700);