This is a common clause which is used frequently:
“Unless the Buyer gives notice in writing delivered to the Seller personally or in accordance with any other provisions for the delivery of notice in this Agreement of Purchase and Sale or any Schedule thereto not later than 5 business days, that this condition is fulfilled, this Offer shall be null and void and the deposit shall be returned to the Buyer in full without deduction.”
Question:
When is it due?
Answer:
There is no proper definition of “business day”. Under REBBA, it means any day other than a Saturday. The first question would be whether the Real Estate and Business Brokers Act applies to this.
There might be a definition in Schedule B, but if there isn’t then it has no specific meaning.
The day doesn’t run out until 11:59:59 pm.
As for the count, if the time period commences upon acceptance, then, the acceptance day is Day 0 and the next day is Day 1 and so on.
This is very confusing:
- We should have a start, and
- We should know what business day means.
So, don’t use this specific clause. There are many clause which clearly specify the “time due” right down to the minute, without all the difficulty undertaking a computation.
Brian Madigan LL.B., Broker