What happens if the land registry system is down on my scheduled closing day in Ontario?
Most Ontario real estate closings register electronically through the province's e-reg system rather than on paper, so an outage on closing day is a real practical risk. When the system is down, your lawyer cannot register the transfer or the new mortgage at that moment, even if the money is ready to move.
In practice, lawyers work around this using a solicitor's undertaking: the buyer's and seller's lawyers agree that funds will be released and the deal will close in every respect except formal registration, with the receiving lawyer promising, as a matter of professional obligation, to register as soon as the system is back up. This lets possession and the financial side of the deal proceed on schedule while the paperwork catches up. It relies on trust between lawyers and is treated seriously, since an undertaking not honoured is a professional conduct matter. If an outage affects your closing, your lawyer will normally contact the other side immediately to arrange this rather than simply delaying everything until the system returns.
Key takeaways
- Ontario registrations are done electronically, so a system outage can stall same-day registration.
- Lawyers commonly use a solicitor's undertaking to let closing proceed and register once the system is back.
- Breaching an undertaking is a serious professional matter, which is why lawyers rely on them.
- A short outage rarely needs to delay possession if both lawyers agree to proceed this way.