Consultant agreements: OAA 600 and RAIC Document Six

CCDC 2 names a Consultant and gives it real power over the construction contract: it interprets the documents, certifies payment and confirms Ready-for-Takeover. But none of the Consultant's duties to the owner come from CCDC 2. They come from the consultant agreement, which in Ontario is usually OAA 600-2021 and elsewhere in Canada is often RAIC Document Six. Owners who sign these forms without reading them find out later what the architect was never hired to do.

Learning outcomes

• Identify the current OAA and RAIC forms, their parts, and where project-specific changes belong.
• Explain basic, additional and extra services, the common fee methods and how fees are spread across phases.
• Apply the Construction Cost Budget and redesign tolerance, and read the limitation of liability, insurance and copyright terms.
• Connect the consultant agreement to the Consultant's role under CCDC 2-2020 on Northgate.

The lesson

Which form, which edition

The Ontario Association of Architects (OAA) publishes a 2021 suite. OAA 600-2021 is the standard form for a licensed member's services, in an "A" version for architects and an "LT" version for licensed technologists. OAA 800-2021 is the short form, and OAA 900-2021 is the subcontract between the architect and its subconsultants. The OAA index of July 2025 says contracts not listed there are no longer available for use, so an owner who is handed OAA 600-2013 should ask why. The OAA 600-2021 form is one contract: an Agreement (Articles A01 to A33), Definitions, General Conditions, five Schedules and two Appendices.

The Royal Architectural Institute of Canada (RAIC) publishes Document Six, the Canadian Standard Form of Contract for Architectural Services, currently the 2018 edition, together with Document Nine for the architect's consultants. Document Six has an Agreement Form, Definitions, General Conditions and Schedules A (services), B (reimbursable expenses) and C (time-based rates). The RAIC guide is clear that the Definitions and General Conditions are meant to be used unaltered, with changes made in separate Supplementary Conditions. OAA 600 does the same through Schedule 5. Both guides also say what the form is not for: Document Six points design-build projects to CCDC 15 and IPD projects to a multi-party contract such as CCDC 30, covered in lesson 18.

Services and fees

OAA 600-2021 sorts work into three buckets. Basic Services (Schedule 2) follow the RAIC fee guide's phases. Additional Services (Schedule 3) are agreed at signing. Extra Services (Schedule 4) are anything else, billed at hourly rates by staff level under Article A18. Basic and additional fees can be fixed or time- or unit-based under A17. One default deserves attention: help with adjudication, mediation or arbitration in disputes that are not between the owner and the architect is billed at 200% of the listed rates unless the parties agree otherwise. On a CCDC 2 project, that covers the architect's support when the owner and contractor go to adjudication under Ontario's Construction Act.

Document Six sets the compensation method in Article A12 and spreads the fee over phases in A13. When the fee is a percentage, GC13 bases it on the Construction Budget, then the Construction Cost Estimate, then the actual Construction Cost, depending on the stage at invoicing, without retroactive adjustment.

View the data

Phase	Typical share of basic services fee
Schematic design	12.5%
Design development	12.5%
Construction documents	50%
Bidding	2.5%
Construction	22.5%
Total	100%

Budget and redesign tolerance

Both forms make the owner responsible for the budget and the architect responsible for designing to it, within a tolerance. Under OAA 600-2021, the owner sets the Construction Cost Budget and the architect designs within the Permitted Budget Exceedance (Article A09), which the Guide says has traditionally been up to 15%. Construction Cost excludes value-added taxes such as HST, the architect may rely on the owner's cost consultant (GC06.8), and extraordinary market conditions are dealt with in GC06.7. Document Six sets a redesign tolerance in Article A19 with a default of 15%, handled in GC4.4 to 4.6. If the owner's budget is firm, the tolerance is the number to negotiate. Fifteen percent on a $30 million building is $4.5 million.

Liability, insurance and copyright

OAA 600-2021 limits contract liability to six years (GC09.10), places no contractual cap on claims that cannot be insured, such as illegal or intentional acts (GC09.3), and limits each party's indemnity to direct losses. Professional liability insurance is mandatory (A14). It is written on a claims-made basis, so what matters is the policy in force when a claim is made, and the Guide suggests keeping it for two to three years after completion. Document Six limits the architect's liability to the lesser of the insurance available when the claim is made and the amount stated in Article A22 (GC9), and limits both parties to direct damages (GC9.3).

Neither form transfers copyright. The owner gets a licence to use the Instruments of Service for the project: OAA 600-2021 widened that licence, recognizes the architect's background intellectual property and offers an optional waiver of moral rights. Document Six grants its licence under GC6, with BIM handled through the IBC BIM Contract Appendix. Owners who plan to reuse a design, or to finish a project with another architect after termination, need to read these clauses before they sign.

The Consultant inside CCDC 2

The OAA Guide sets out what contract administration means. The architect must act impartially in administering the construction contract (GC07.2), certify payment on the basis of the contractor's schedule of values (GC07.3), and visit the site periodically using professional judgement, not continuously (GC09.6.1). It does not supervise the contractor's methods or safety and does not take on the constructor's duties under the OHSA. It may not prepare certificates for the owner's lenders during construction, which the Guide treats as a conflict of interest (GC09.6.6). Payment runs on the Construction Act: the architect's invoice is a proper invoice (A23), usually monthly, with interest on late payment (A25), and holdback on fees can be released at designated design phases (A26). On termination, OAA 600 needs notice, a longer notice for termination for convenience, and lets the architect terminate after 60 days of suspension. Document Six GC11 has a similar 60-day suspension rule.

Northgate worked example

Northgate Distribution Centre (fictional) uses OAA 600 for Ridgeline Architects Inc. (fictional), with structural and MEP subconsultants, and CCDC 2-2020 for Halvorsen Builders Ltd. (fictional). See the Northgate fact sheet. Ridgeline's subconsultants would normally be retained under OAA 900-2021, the companion form.

Budget test. Halvorsen's tender of $34,950,000 is the Contract Price. With a 15% Permitted Budget Exceedance, that tender would only fall outside the tolerance if the Construction Cost Budget in Ridgeline's agreement had been below $30,391,304 ($34,950,000 ÷ 1.15). The owner's construction budget is $38,000,000 including a $3,050,000 contingency, so the owner's representative should check which figure was written into OAA 600 as the Construction Cost Budget. The contingency is the owner's money, not design headroom.

Ridgeline's construction-phase calendar. Figure 3 shows the services Ridgeline must deliver against the Northgate milestones. Every one of them is paid out of the construction-phase share of the fee, which is why that share should be tested against a realistic number of site visits and certificates over the 13 months from mobilization (M3) to final completion (M11).

One trap to avoid. Northgate's lender may ask Ridgeline to sign monthly draw certificates. The OAA Guide treats lender certificates prepared during construction as a conflict of interest for the architect. The owner should plan for a separate cost consultant or the owner's representative to serve the lender.

Owner's move

• Use the current form. OAA 600-2021 in Ontario; Document Six (2018) where it is the local standard. Put every change in Schedule 5 or Supplementary Conditions, not in the printed text.
• Write the Construction Cost Budget and the tolerance down. State the budget, whether it includes contingency, and a tolerance that matches your financing.
• Match services to CCDC 2. The consultant agreement must include every Consultant duty the construction contract assumes, including the 10-day Ready-for-Takeover review and adjudication support.
• Price the construction phase realistically. Agree site visit frequency, meeting attendance and turnaround times for shop drawings and RFIs.
• Read the licence. Make sure you can use the documents and BIM files to finish, operate and maintain the building if the agreement ends early.

Common mistakes

1. Signing a retired edition. OAA 600-2013 has been replaced by the 2021 suite.
2. Expecting supervision. Site visits are periodic. The architect is not responsible for the contractor's methods or safety.
3. Leaving the budget blank or vague. Without a stated budget, the redesign tolerance has nothing to measure against.
4. Asking the architect to certify draws for the lender. The OAA Guide treats this as a conflict of interest.
5. Forgetting extra-service rates. Adjudication support at 200% of hourly rates can surprise an owner mid-dispute.

Quick quiz

1. Where do project-specific amendments go in OAA 600-2021?

   1. Schedule 2
   2. Schedule 5
   3. Appendix A
   4. Article A01

2. What is the default redesign tolerance in RAIC Document Six?

   1. 5%
   2. 10%
   3. 15%
   4. 20%

3. Northgate's tender is $34,950,000. With a 15% tolerance, below what budget would the tender exceed the tolerance?

   1. $29,707,500
   2. $30,391,304
   3. $34,950,000
   4. $38,000,000

4. Under OAA 600-2021, how does the architect administer the construction contract?

   1. Solely in the owner's interest
   2. Impartially, with a duty of care to the public
   3. As the contractor's agent
   4. As constructor under the OHSA

5. What do the owner's rights to the drawings usually take the form of?

   1. An assignment of copyright
   2. A licence to use the Instruments of Service
   3. Joint ownership
   4. No rights until final payment

Show answers and explanations

1. B. Schedule 5 holds supplementary conditions, amendments and changes to definitions or Articles.
2. C. Article A19 sets the redesign tolerance, with a default of 15%.
3. B. $34,950,000 ÷ 1.15 = $30,391,304. Any budget below that puts the tender outside the tolerance.
4. B. GC07.2 requires fairness; acting solely for the owner is not appropriate.
5. B. Neither form transfers copyright; the owner receives a licence.

Key terms

OAA 600-2021

The Ontario Association of Architects' standard form of contract for a licensed member's services.

RAIC Document Six

The Canadian Standard Form of Contract for Architectural Services published by the RAIC; current edition 2018.

Basic, additional and extra services

Services in the standard scope, services agreed at signing beyond it, and services added later at hourly rates.

Construction Cost Budget

The owner's budget for construction, excluding value-added taxes, against which the design is measured.

Permitted Budget Exceedance / redesign tolerance

The percentage by which tenders may exceed the budget before the architect's redesign obligation applies.

Instruments of Service

The drawings, specifications and other documents the architect produces, licensed to the owner for the project.

Claims-made insurance

A policy that responds to claims made while it is in force, which is why professional liability cover must be kept after completion.

References

1. Ontario Association of Architects, Guide to OAA 600-2021, version 1.2.
2. Ontario Association of Architects, Index to contracts and guides, version 6.3 (July 2025).
3. Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, Guide to RAIC Document Six, 2018 edition.
4. Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, RAIC Canadian standard forms of contract for 2025 ExAC (lists Document Six and Document Nine, 2018 editions).
5. Royal Architectural Institute of Canada, RAIC digital contracts.
6. WeirFoulds LLP, Here's the drill: the new owner-architect contract released by the OAA, the OAA 600-2021 (November 2022).

Verified on November 6, 2026.

Next lesson in this trackSubcontracts: CCA 1 and flow-down clauses