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6 www.canadianlawyermag.com Ontario real estate files are faster, denser, and riskier than ever. Stephanie Rose and Margaret Jones explain why data architecture, AI, and relationships now define conveyancing technology Beyond legacy conveyancing: AI-powered platform ONTARIO REAL ESTATE deals may move fast, but they're also fraught. From compressed timelines and last-minute instructions to complicated deal structures and ever-higher client expectations, what used to be straight- forward conveyancing is now a high-stakes exercise in risk management. Yet many firms still rely on legacy tools that demand endless manual data entry, clunky workarounds, and hours of document review just to be confident nothing critical has been missed. "Traditional conveyancing hasn't kept up with emerging AI technology," says Stephanie Rose, VP of sales & operations at Quintalink. "On top of that, those longstanding solu- tions can be very costly – and the real estate market is competitive. Lawyers are being forced to think differently as exorbitant costs could lead to lost business." A perfect storm of complexity, cost, time, and risk Foundationally, things are changing. Clients expect faster service and more consis- tent communication, while firms grapple with uncertain markets and fee sensitivity. Each real estate file brings its own unique circumstances, and matters are increasingly structurally complex. A prime example is the time lawyers spend on reviewing status certificates, which SPECIAL PROMOTIONAL FEATURE REAL ESTATE Rose calls "notoriously complex." Lawyers spend more than four hours reviewing documents – often dealing with inconsistent formats and varying scan quality – while hoping no critical information is buried that could expose the client to additional costs. Sometimes, even after doing all the work, the deal falls through. All this lands on a document layer that's already straining capacity. Agreements of purchase and sale, mortgage instructions, and insurance binders consume significant time in every transaction. Quintalink uses industry-leading AI tools to solve these challenges. Then there's what Rose calls many firms' hidden mistake: assuming data is safe simply because they're using a well- known platform. That standard approach leaves real ambiguity around who owns the data, who can access it, and what can be done with it – and, as Rose notes, major corporations across industries have already exposed sensitive client informa- tion to breaches, whether through negli- gent data handling or outright sharing with third parties. "In an era of rising cybersecurity threats and identity theft, protecting that data is essential to managing professional liability and keeping E&O exposure in check," Rose notes. Industry changes have made space for a new age of real estate transactions, one that calls for advanced technology and more comprehensive integrations. They've also opened the door to AI, which quickly moved from a buzzword to necessary infrastructure. "Years ago, you'd pull paper files from cabinets and wait weeks for documents in the mail; then, PDFs and email meant every- thing moved in minutes," Rose says. "AI is the next step in that evolution." How one Canadian platform is rethinking conveyancing At Quintalink, the answer to this new reality starts with re-engineering the foundation that conveyancing runs on: data ownership, docu- ment workflows, and how AI fits into the file. Quintalink gives each firm its own dedi- cated, web-based server. Isolation means a breach at one firm doesn't touch the other, and if something does go wrong, Quintalink's support team steps in directly to resolve it. It also allows the platform to be tailored to specific use cases. For example, a firm needed to split proceeds among more than 10 vendors and had to re-edit each time the deal was extended. "We delivered a feature to their server which allowed them to split the payment by percentage or fraction and they loved it, so we decided to further deliver it to all Quintalink users," Margaret Jones, docu- ment manager, recalls. "That kind of respon- siveness isn't possible when everyone is locked into the same rigid system. Quintalink continues to push into new territories based on client feedback and breaking barriers with ever-changing new technology – it's where their partnerships shine brightest. Status certificates, a pain point for condo work, can be uploaded to an automated status certificate review tool in Quintalink that produces an overview and customiz- able summary report, flagging financial issues, low reserve funds, leasing and rule constraints, and even missing documents, with citations back to source pages. "The system is designed to handle the reality of status certificates, and it extracts