STANDARD RESIDENTIAL REAL ESTATE PROTOCOL FOR
LAWYERS PRACTISING IN THE REGIONAL MUNICIPALITY OF NIAGARA

The Lincoln and Welland County Law Associations recommend the following protocols for the practice of residential real estate in the Regional Municipality of Niagara:

  1. Each of the Buyer’s and Seller’s Lawyers shall confirm in writing their agreement to be bound by the most recent version of the Document Registration Agreement (“DRA”) as posted from time to time on the website for the Law Society of Upper Canada. Exchange of an executed copy of the DRA is not required.
  2. The Seller’s Lawyer shall prepare the draft electronic Transfer and prior to closing, forward it to the Buyer’s Lawyer by the Teranet messaging system. The Buyer’s Lawyer will complete the electronic Transfer and include the Buyer’s date of birth, address for service and how title will be taken. Once the form of the electronic Transfer has been settled by the Buyer’s and Seller’s Lawyers, each lawyer shall sign the electronic Transfer for completeness at least one day prior to the Completion Date. For clarity, release and registration shall be governed by the protocol set out in the DRA.
  3. The Seller’s Lawyer shall prepare all the Seller’s documents which include the Seller’s Closing Certificate, the Seller’s Lawyer’s Redirection and Undertaking, the Transfer and the Statement of Adjustments (collectively the “Seller’s Documents”). The Buyer’s Lawyer shall prepare the Buyer’s Closing Certificate. Each lawyer shall e-mail, fax or otherwise deliver drafts of the documents to the other lawyer for review prior to the Completion Date. Unless the parties agree otherwise, the parties agree to use the most recent form of the standard documents adopted by the Lincoln and Welland County Law Associations and posted on the Welland County Law Association web site.
  4. Where the Buyer’s and Seller’s Lawyers practice in the same city, the Buyer’s Lawyer shall be responsible for the delivery of funds and the Buyer’s Closing Certificate, in duplicate, to the Seller’s Lawyer’s office, at which time the Seller’s Lawyer will provide the Buyer’s Lawyer with the executed Seller’s Documents, in duplicate.
  5. Where the Buyer’s and Seller’s Lawyers practice in different cities, the Buyer’s Lawyer shall pay for delivery of the funds and the Buyer’s Closing Certificate, in duplicate, to the Seller’s Lawyer’s office and the Seller’s Lawyer shall pay for delivery of the Seller’s Documents, in duplicate, to the Buyer’s Lawyer’s office.
  6. The Seller’s Lawyer may redirect the Buyer’s Lawyer and the Buyer to pay the closing proceeds by the number of certified cheques equal to the number of encumbrances affecting title plus one. Further, in order to accommodate closing stacked deals on the same day, the Seller’s Lawyer may request a reasonable number of additional certified cheques provided that the Seller’s Lawyer reimburses the Buyer’s Lawyer for the banking fees actually incurred by the Buyer’s Lawyer to certify these additional cheques. The Buyer’s Lawyer is not obligated to prepare a separate certified cheque for the payment of real estate commission.

7.The Seller, the Seller’s Lawyer and the Buyer’s Lawyer will sign the Planning Act boxes in the Transfer in accordance with the terms of the Agreement of Purchase and Sale.

8.When the Buyer’s Lawyer makes a requisition with respect to a title issue, the Buyer’s Lawyer should provide the Seller’s Lawyer with a copy of the relevant title documents so that the Seller’s Lawyer can respond appropriately to the requisition.

9.Lawyers practising in the Regional Municipality of Niagara are encouraged to use the Protocol and the form of Seller’s Documents and Buyer’s Documents most recently adopted by the Lincoln and Welland County Law Associations and posted on the Welland County Law Association web site. Additional documents (i.e. Declarations of Possession) are not required unless the Seller and Buyer or their respective lawyers agree otherwise.

This Protocol was approved by the Lincoln and Welland County Law Associations on September 21, 2004.