Date: January 2024
Sangha Construction Law Professional Corporation was recently successful representing an owner in an adjudication where the owner received a determination in the amount of $135k. This adjudication was unique from previous adjudications I have conducted for clients in the past, because in this case, the adjudicator awarded the repayment of monies to the owner.
Considering the current backlog at the Superior Court, I regularly suggest adjudication as a means to obtain an interim decision…so long as my client has sufficient documentation and evidence with respect to their claims. Although a determination is interim, its effect is quite powerful. The determination is enforceable as a court order and in my experience, it has often been the catalyst for resolving the entire dispute.
To get a sense of how fast adjudication is, below is the timeline with respect to this dispute from the date of initial notice to the contractor (to return to site) to the release of the adjudicator’s determination:
– Initial notice sent to contractor to return to site: October 25, 2023
– Final notice sent to contractor: November 2, 2023
– Termination of the contract: November 7, 2023
– Delivery of notice of adjudication: November 27, 2023
– Delivery of claimant’s statement: December 11, 2023
– Delivery of respondent’s statement: December 20, 2023
– Adjudication determination: January 11, 2024
All of this in 78 days – less time than it often takes to have a short motion heard.
Our firm regularly works with clients to ensure that they are being “proactive” with respect to documenting work on a project so that in the event that a dispute occurs, adjudication can be used effectively.
If you are interested in learning more about how to be “proactive”, please reach out!