Justice Flaherty of the Rhode Island Supreme Court begins the court's opinion in GSM Industrial Inc. v. Grinnell Fire Protection Systems Company, Inc., et al, with "This case requires us to don our miner's helmets and once again descend into the subterranean labyrinth that is the Rhode Island mechanic's lien statute." That's a perfect introduction to this opinion, as the court addresses the validity of a mechanics lien with a review of the tiny details that must be followed by lien claimants in the state.

The issue in the Rhode Island's GSM case is whether a particular notarial acknowledgment in a notice of intention to enforce a mechanics lien met the state's statutory requirement that the statement be "under oath."