CLA 1101 - Understanding the Basics of the Commercial Liens Act
About the Course
In your daily practice or business, are you being asked questions about The Commercial Liens Act (CLA) and its Regulations for which you do not have ready answers? Are you encountering seemingly simple CLA issues that require hours of painstaking research? Enrol in CLA 1101 if you did not take a commercial liens course during your post-secondary training or are simply interested in learning about how the CLA affects your business or your clients' business.
Scheduled Instruction
3 hours
Program
Session 1: History & Scope - The CLA was enacted in Saskatchewan in 2001 and took force in 2002. It enables service providers to protect their trade credit with liens on the goods they enhance and preserve. Session 1 recaps the historical events that led to the coming into force of the CLA, and outlines the general scope of the statute.
Session 2: Integration & Interpretation - The CLA is replete with technical terms and concepts. It is an integrated statute that incorporates sections and entire parts of the PPSA by reference. To gain proficiency with the CLA, one must study the statute itself (CLA proper) along with sections and entire parts of the PPSA that are incorporated by reference into the CLA (PPSA CLA-incorporated provisions). This legislative drafting approach creates interpretive difficulties, some of which are canvassed and resolved in Session 2.
Session 3: Creation & Termination - The CLA provides that a lien attaches to goods upon the commencement of the services giving rise to the lien. Until the services are completed, however, the lien secures only the fair value of the services provided to that stage. This feature of the Act diverges from the common law, under which a lien only arises upon completion of the services. There are also a series of events, canvassed in Session 3, that terminate a lien on serviced goods.
Session 4: Perfection - Perfecting a lien on goods under the CLA is a necessary yet insufficient condition for establishing priority over subsequent competing interests in serviced goods. It is therefore important that a lien claimant perfect its commercial lien. A lien may be perfected by possession or registration in the Personal Property Registry.
Session 5: Priority - Priority refers to the ordering or ranking of competing liens and security interests in goods. However, the term is also used in more colloquial fashion as a generic reference to a lien claimant's position in relation to any third party interest (like a buyer or lessee). A lien claimant who wishes to assert priority against third parties should ensure, at the very least, that its lien is perfected.
Session 6: Enforcement & Judicial Supervision - A lien claimant's enforcement rights become operative when the requester commits an act of default. The CLA lays out detailed rules of enforcement, which in some cases requires seizure by a sheriff. The Court of King's Bench for Saskatchewan serves as adjudicator of legal disputes and oversees an expedited settlement procedure.
About the CLA
The CLA is a revolutionary statute that enables service providers to protect their trade credit with proprietary interests – liens – in the goods they enhance and preserve. Examples of service providers who benefit from liens conferred by the CLA include warehousers, transporters (e.g. truck, rail, plane, etc.), tow truck operators, mechanics, autobody specialists, grain dryers, jewelers, computer technicians, furniture restorationists, tailors, shoe smiths and artists. In conjunction with The Personal Property Security Act, 1993 (PPSA), the CLA modernizes and rationalizes the law of commercial liens by standardizing rules for attachment, perfection, priority and enforcement. Failure to comply with the technical requirements of the CLA can be fatal to a service provider's claim to the goods under service. Sound command of the statute is therefore an absolute must for any service provider or commercial lawyer.
Discontinued as a Public Course
CLA 1101 is no longer delivered publicly, only privately. If your organization is interested in arranging for private delivery of CLA 1101, please contact Clayton Bangsund for pricing, scheduling and other details.
