Construction & Renovation: Contractor Disputes Including Workmanship Quality Concerns, Among Other Issues

Question: How do contractor disputes typically unfold in Canadian courts?

Answer: Disputes between property owners and contractors often arise from accusations of poor workmanship or failure of payment, prominently seen in Small Claims Court. These cases are complex due to the involvement of construction law, extensive evidence, and independent expert reports on workmanship standards. Issues may also involve unjust enrichment and consumer protection laws. For guidance through construction litigation challenges, Thamar Bilingual Legal Services Ontario offers skilled support across Mississauga, Scarborough, and other locations.

Common Disputes Affecting Contractors

The disputes between a property owner and those hired to perform project work, whether as construction or renovation or maintenance projects, frequently end up in court.  In some courts, such as the Small Claims Court, with a $35,000 limit per Plaintiff, defective workmanship cases are among some of the most commonly occurring cases.  Allegations often include defective work or incomplete work.

Challenges

Construction law cases can be very challenging to litigate due to the extent of laws involves as well as the extent of evidence usually involved and the need for independent witnesses to inspect and provide expert reports as to what constitutes as proper workmanship and thus whether the trade standards or the contractual specifications for the project were met, valuation of the portion of work properly completed, among other things; and accordingly, even the seasoned legal professional may find construction law cases as burdensome to litigate.  These cases are often extra challenging and troublesome due to the conduct of the parties involved and breach of various legal duties occuring prior to the obtaining legal advice.

Additionally, litigation arising from construction or renovation disputes often extends into legal issues beyond allegations of poor quality of work and also include legal issues such as quantum meruit disputes over the value of partially completed work, consumer rights concerns, mitigation requirements, among other issues.