Law Brief: Lien Times: Securing Mechanics Liens for Preconstruction Services
Benefits of a Stop Notice for Construction Contractors
Hot to Get Paid: Tips and Tricks for Construction Companies in DC, MD, and VA
A mechanics’ lien affords unpaid contractors, subcontractors, laborers, and/or material suppliers a security interest in the property’s real estate and title. A blanket lien is a type of mechanics’ lien that covers more than...more
Pay-if-paid clauses are conditional payment provisions regularly included in construction subcontracts. The intent of these clauses is to shift the risk of loss from a prime contractor to its subcontractors by making a...more
In an unpublished opinion, a California appeals court has upheld a subcontractor’s mechanics lien claim despite the subcontractor’s failure to strictly follow the procedural requirements set forth in the mechanics lien...more
A mechanics’ lien is a powerful remedy that provides a contractor with a priority lien on a property and a fast means of being made whole if payment is not rendered at the completion of a job. In order to successfully obtain...more
Welcome to our third issue of 2024 for our construction industry insights e-newsletter - The Site Report. In honor of last week’s Women in Construction Week, last Friday’s International Women’s Day, and Women’s History...more
General Contractors may seek to condition payments to Subcontractors by using “pay-if-paid” or “pay-when-paid” clauses in their contracts. Typically, as the name suggests, pay-when-paid provisions concern the timing of...more
Mechanic’s liens have long been a valuable tool for mechanics and materialmen in the Commonwealth to secure their rights to payment. Yet, despite mechanic’s liens having been in existence for well over a century, properly...more
Lenders on commercial real estate projects typically require that the general contractor subordinate its mechanics’ lien rights to the lender’s deed of trust and other financing documents in order to assure the lender that...more
Mechanics' liens on public construction projects are a fact of life. Although they may seem familiar, it does not pay to regard them too casually. Mechanics' liens are statutory creatures, and anyone dealing with them needs...more
Lien claims can pose serious challenges—and immense frustration—for any owner or developer of a private construction project, particularly for those wishing to refinance or sell the property. An owner with a finance...more
Contractors or subcontractors who perform offsite work can face unique challenges when an owner decides to suspend or end a project. Luckily, states including Pennsylvania and New Jersey, have legislation that offers remedies...more
How can a contractor, subcontractor, or supplier secure payment for its work? One solution is to file a mechanics’ lien against a project’s property. Lien laws vary widely from state to state and time to time because...more
Construction law is NOT boring, at least that’s what I tell my daughters. In these series of posts, I will explore some of the VERY interesting historical facts about construction law that can be used at your next motion...more
Property owners are often confronted with a contractor threatening a mechanic’s lien on their property. These liens may stem from a dispute between them and their contractor, or even between a subcontractor and a general...more
Welcome to the DMV Construction Law Series, where each month we will examine a different set of legal issues important to contractors. Our first entry in the series discusses the timing of filing mechanic’s liens. Future...more
In the 2020 COVID-19 year, there were not that many construction-related cases decided by the California Courts of Appeal, and none by the California Supreme Court. However, there were a number of interesting cases that raise...more
The California Court of Appeal recently discussed an owner's remedies (and some limits to those remedies) when a contractor improperly records a mechanic's lien. According to the court's analysis, the owner's primary remedy...more
A recent New York appellate court decision highlights the danger of contractors, subcontractors and suppliers not having a complete understanding of Section 38 of the Lien Law. It allows the party against whom a mechanic's...more
Whether you are the owner or the general contractor, dealing with mechanic’s liens filed by subcontractors or suppliers can be frustrating and, in some cases, present the very real threat of having to pay twice for work or...more
Contractors and suppliers are sometimes challenged to secure a claim for past due payment with a lien on the project, all subject to lien laws that vary throughout the United States. In Arizona, as in most states, the...more
Winger Contr. Co. v. Cargill, Inc., No. 17-1169, 2019 BL 132092 (Iowa Apr. 12, 2019). On April 12, 2019, the Iowa Supreme Court affirmed a lower court ruling which held that, inter alia, the Iowa mechanic’s lien statute...more
We’ve seen an uptick in out-of-state companies working on construction projects in New Mexico. The following is an overview of some of the nuances of New Mexico construction law about which companies may want to be aware. ...more
Getting paid on time is essential to running a construction business. And the bigger the job, the bigger the risk it can pose to your company. Fortunately, there are a number of tools available to help contractors,...more
Dear YouDig? We are owed mid-six figures for excavation work we finished six months ago. The general contractor is playing dodgeball and claims it hasn’t been paid. We want to make a claim to get our dough. Problem, it...more
The subcontractor's sworn statement is one of most effective tools that contractors can use to ensure that lower-tier subcontractors and suppliers receive adequate payment throughout the job, yet many contractors either fail...more