What margin of error does an arbitrator have?  Should an arbitral tribunal’s decision be set aside if it is legally incorrect?  Or should a wider deference be shown, so that a decision will only be set aside if it is unreasonable, or perverse? And how detailed does an arbitral decision have to be? Can it […]

Last week we discussed joint ventures in construction projects.  That issue arose from the important recent decision of the Prince Edward Island Court of Appeal in WCI Waste Conversion Inc. v. ADI International In.    In this article, we will examine two further issues raised by that decision: One, the duties of good faith and […]

A difficult issue that may arise between contractors and subcontractors is the nature of their contractual relationship.  Are they:  independent contractors; or partners; or joint venturers; or employees one of the other?   In WCI Waste Conversion Inc. v. ADI International Inc, The Prince Edward Island Court of Appeal recently considered whether a contractor and subcontractor […]

Can an informal tender process which is not part of a bid depository system give rise to liability for negligent misrepresentation?  Can it give rise to liability for bad faith conduct?   In Oz Optics Limited v. Timbercom, Inc., the Ontario Court of Appeal recently answered Yes to the first question, and after agonizing over […]

Update:  The decision of the BC Supreme Court in West Fraser Mills Ltd. v. BKB Construction Inc., referred to in this article has since been reversed by the BC Court of Appeal.  Please see my blog of April 7, 2012.  The decision of the BC Supreme Court may still be relevant if and when that […]

Every once in a while, an important decision comes along which should be put in your hip pocket so that it can be pulled out when needed.  Rainy Sky S.A. v. Kookmin Bank is such a decision.  In this decision, the U.K. Supreme Court (formerly the House of Lords) recently held that if there is […]

Does an arbitral tribunal have authority to dismiss an arbitration claim for want of prosecution?  Some arbitration statutes expressly state that a tribunal has the power to do so.  Absent such an express power, the British Columbia Court of Appeal has held that the tribunal has no inherent authority to do so:  Premium Brands Operating […]

Courts have difficulty reconciling the rights of parties to arbitration when there are construction liens, cross claims, counterclaims and third party rights involved.  How can arbitration, which is a bilateral dispute resolution system, resolve those disparate rights?  And what appeal rights are there for the parties who are dissatisfied with a judge’s conclusion that the […]

The process by which subcontractors’ tenders are accepted in a bid depository is fundamental to the efficacy of that system.  If that process does not effectively bind the subcontractors, then the subcontractors will be able to unilaterally withdraw their bids later.  The British Columbia Supreme Court addressed this issue in its recent decision in Civil […]