Notice clauses and deadlines that decide entitlement

More claims fail on notice than on any other single point. Notice clauses exist for a good reason: the party receiving notice gets the chance to investigate, mitigate and decide while the facts are fresh. That is why contracts, and many owners' Supplementary Conditions, make notice a condition of relief. This lesson covers the three notice clocks in CCDC 2-2020, what a notice should contain, and how both sides should run a notice log.

Learning outcomes

• State the notice requirements in CCDC 2-2020 GC 6.4, 6.5 and 6.6.
• Explain why notice is treated as a condition precedent and what that means in practice.
• Draft a notice that is specific enough to protect entitlement.
• Run a notice log that both owner and contractor can rely on.

The lesson

Three clocks in CCDC 2-2020

CCDC 2-2020 runs three separate notice clocks. Under GC 6.4, a party that discovers concealed or unknown conditions must give Notice in Writing before disturbing them and within 5 Working Days of first observing them. Under GC 6.5, the Consultant must receive Notice in Writing of a delay within 10 Working Days after the delay starts. Under GC 6.6, a party that intends to claim a change in Contract Price must give timely Notice in Writing, keep records, mitigate and submit a detailed account within a reasonable time; for a continuing event, interim accounts follow. The Consultant then has 30 Working Days to give findings unless the parties agree otherwise [1].

GC 6.6 sets no fixed number of days for the first notice, which is why owners often add one in the Supplementary Conditions, such as 10 or 15 Working Days. Contracts Lesson 10 covers writing Supplementary Conditions. Read the version you actually signed: the standard form is the starting point, not the deal.

Why notice is treated as a condition

Notice clauses are often drafted as conditions precedent: no notice, no extension. Canadian courts generally enforce clear notice requirements in commercial contracts between sophisticated parties, though the result in any case depends on the wording, the conduct of the parties and whether the receiving party already knew. Do not plan on a court excusing a missed notice. Plan on giving it.

What a good notice says

• The event: what happened, where and when it started, with a reference to the RFI, instruction or record.
• The clause: GC 6.4, 6.5 or 6.6, and any Supplementary Condition that applies.
• The expected effect: the activities affected and whether the critical path is at risk, even if the amount is not yet known.
• The reservation: that time and cost are reserved and a detailed account will follow.
• The delivery: sent to the address and person the Agreement names for notices, in the form it requires.

A notice does not need the final number. It needs to tell the other side, early, that a claim is coming and why. The detailed account comes later.

Northgate worked example

Northgate Distribution Centre (fictional) is a 12,000 m² tilt-up warehouse in Vaughan, Ontario, built by Halvorsen Builders Ltd. (fictional) under CCDC 2-2020, with Ridgeline Architects Inc. (fictional) as Consultant. See the Northgate fact sheet. This course follows one delay claim from first notice to settlement. Ready-for-Takeover (M9) was due Friday, January 14, 2028 and was reached on Tuesday, March 14, 2028: 60 calendar days late. All events, dates and amounts are illustrative.

Halvorsen's project manager keeps a notice log. Figure 2 shows the notices that matter for Claim C-01. Three were on time. One, for the crane breakdown, was never given, which is correct: it was Halvorsen's own delay. One was a problem: Halvorsen's GC 6.6 notice of intent to claim acceleration costs arrived on November 15, 2027, after most of the overtime had already been worked.

The owner's representative checks every date against the contract and the Supplementary Conditions, which add a 10 Working Day limit to GC 6.6. The delay notices for the mezzanine redesign, permanent power and dock levellers all pass. The acceleration notice is late for the overtime worked before November 1. That single date is one reason the acceleration head drops from $118,810 to $24,100 at settlement (lesson 13).

Your move

If you are the owner

• Put a clear notice period in GC 6.6. A number of Working Days removes the argument over "timely".
• Acknowledge every notice in writing. Silence can be read as acceptance or waiver.
• Track notices in the change log. Date received, clause, event, status.
• Don't use notice to ambush. If you knew and responded, a technical notice defence may not hold, and it damages the relationship.

If you are the contractor

• Give notice early and often. A short notice now beats a perfect one too late.
• Send it the way the Agreement says. Email to the site superintendent may not count.
• Follow with interim accounts. For continuing events, update the effect every month.
• Diarize the deadlines. 5 Working Days for concealed conditions, 10 for delay, and whatever the SCs say for GC 6.6.

Common mistakes

1. Waiting for the full picture. By the time the amount is known, the deadline has passed.
2. Burying notice in meeting minutes. Minutes may not meet the Agreement's notice requirements.
3. Generic notices. "We reserve all rights" with no event identified protects little.
4. Ignoring the Supplementary Conditions. They often shorten the clock.
5. Owners not responding. An unanswered notice becomes evidence that the owner knew and did nothing.

Quick quiz

1. Under GC 6.4, when must notice of concealed conditions be given?

   1. Within 30 days
   2. Before disturbing them and within 5 Working Days of first observing them
   3. At the next OAC meeting
   4. With the claim

2. How many Working Days does GC 6.5 allow for notice of delay?

   1. 5
   2. 10
   3. 15
   4. 30

3. What does GC 6.6 say about the timing of the first notice of a price claim?

   1. 5 Working Days
   2. 10 Working Days
   3. It must be timely; no fixed number is set
   4. It is not required

4. Which item is not needed in a first notice?

   1. The event and its start date
   2. The clause relied on
   3. The final calculated amount
   4. A reservation of time and cost

5. Why did Halvorsen's acceleration notice cause a problem?

   1. It was sent to the wrong person
   2. It arrived after most of the overtime was worked, outside the SC deadline
   3. It claimed time only
   4. It was never sent

Show answers and explanations

1. B. GC 6.4 requires notice before disturbing the condition and within 5 Working Days.
2. B. Notice in Writing within 10 Working Days after the delay starts.
3. C. GC 6.6 requires timely notice without fixing a number, which is why owners often add one in the SCs.
4. C. The amount can follow in the detailed account.
5. B. The November 15 notice was late for overtime worked before November 1.

Key terms

Notice in Writing

A written communication delivered as the Agreement requires; the trigger for most claims deadlines.

Condition precedent

A requirement that must be met before a right arises, such as timely notice.

Detailed account

The full statement of a claim, with facts, contract basis and calculations, that follows the notice.

Interim account

A periodic update of a continuing claim.

Notice log

A register of every notice sent and received, with dates, clauses and status.

References

1. Canadian Construction Documents Committee, CCDC 2-2020 Stipulated Price Contract, GC 6.4 to 6.6 and Part 8. Clause content checked against a publicly posted tender copy; buy the form from CCDC.
2. BC Construction Association, Member Advisory: Providing Notice in Writing (undated, posted 2025).
3. Fenwick Elliott, The SCL Delay and Disruption Protocol: a second edition (November 2017), summarizing the Society of Construction Law Protocol, 2nd edition (February 2017).
4. BRC, Northgate fact sheet (fictional case study, v1, November 4, 2026).

Verified on November 9, 2026.

Next lesson in this trackExcusable, compensable and concurrent delay