3729 - Legal Aspects: Professional Liability & Architects’ Contracts

Course Description

In this course, you’ll learn how basic legal principles relate to architectural practice with regard to common law, judicial process, alternative dispute resolution, and professional liability. This course explains and illustrates that regardless of project type or size, architects should prepare and execute written contracts with both clients and consultants.

This is an online, self-directed course, and you can work through the modules at your own pace. You can expect to complete the course in a month, but have up to two months to complete it.

Quizzes

In the course you will be asked to complete a Confidence Quiz, which contain a set of 20 multiple choice questions. This quiz functions differently than traditional quizzing, as they allow you to retake any question you are unsure about the answer and/or select an incorrect answer, and you may retake them as much as you'd like to. Successful course completion involves receiving a score of 100% on the quiz which is based solely on core module content. 

Notes:

The OAA Self-Study Series for Architects comprises training modules drawn from the mandatory OAA Admission Course each intern architect must complete as part of the licensing process. This material, while not new to those have completed the Admission Course, is valuable to practising architects and related audiences. OAA members can select the modules in which they’re interested, cover the material at their own pace (over a two-month period) and successfully complete a quiz to complete the course.

Grade Report documentation is usually available 4 - 6 weeks after you have successfully completed the course. Once your grade is available, you will be informed by email, and given instructions on how to access your grade. Please use this documentation to claim Continuing Education hours with OAA.

Whether you are an architect or architectural technologist wanting to review some foundational material, someone from outside of the province planning to work in Ontario for the first time, or an architectural practice staff member, participants benefit from the essential material covered in these à la carte courses.

The self-study modules and correlating OAA continuing education hours are:

• Professional Responsibility, Ethics, and Membership in a Self-Regulating Profession (CE Credit Hours = 3.0);
• The Construction Act (CE Credit Hours = 3.0);
• Legal Aspects: Professional Liability and Architects’ Contracts (CE Credit Hours = 3);
• Planning and Development Approvals (CE Credit Hours = 3);
• Ontario Building Code Act and Building Permit Application Process (CE Credit Hours = 3);
• Ontario Building Code Compliance Data: Concepts and Code Analysis (CE Credit Hours = 6);
• Bid Theory and Bid Practice (CE Credit Hours = 3); and
• Construction Contract Administration and General Review (CE Credit Hours = 3).

For intern architects, please note that taking the Self-Study Series for Architects does not count toward completion of the Admission Course. For more information on the Admission Course, click here.

Learning Outcomes

• Identify the elements of the judicial process and the court systems;
• Describe the most frequently used methods for alternate dispute resolution;
• Distinguish key basic concepts of contract law;
• List the stages of a lawsuit in the context of professional liability;
• Outline the risk management measures in the context of professional liability;
• Describe the importance of contracts in the practice of architecture;
• Define the roles and relationships between architects, owners, consultants, and contractors;
• Identify an architect's responsibilities as reflected in OAA standard contracts;
• Explain how the administration of architect contracts relates to the practice of architecture;
• Differentiate standard versus non-standard contracts; and
• Prepare Standard Contracts OAA 600 and OAA 900.

Notes

The alumni discount and other discounts cannot be applied to this course.

This course is open for continuous enrolment. Please register in the current semester section if you want to begin your studies at the time of registration.

Non-refundable