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
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
NY Governor's Veto of Wind Power Bill “Undermines Industry," Critics Say- “The bill known as the ‘Planned Offshore Wind Transmission Act’ has been working its way through the state legislature since April 2023.” Why...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
States struggle to strike the right balance between assuring payments to a contractor who improves real property and a lender whose financing helps make those improvements possible in the first place....more
In Alabama, a lien claimant must file a lawsuit to enforce its mechanic’s lien within six months of the maturation of the entire indebtedness in the Alabama state circuit court in the county where the subject property is...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
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
You control two entities with substantially similar names that are general partners. You accidentally name the wrong entity in a construction contract. What could the fallout be from such a minor mistake? As a recent...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
Welcome to the DMV Construction Law Series, where each month we examine a different set of legal issues important to contractors. Our fourth installment briefly examines certain key parts of Virginia’s Mechanic’s Lien Law...more
One of the most powerful tools in a contractor’s arsenal for obtaining payment on a construction project is a mechanics’ lien claim, which is a security interest that attaches to the owner’s property interest and “clouds” the...more
Welcome to the DMV Construction Law Series, where each month we examine a different set of legal issues important to contractors. In our third installment, we briefly examine certain key parts of Maryland’s Mechanics’ Lien...more
Welcome back to our DMV Construction Law Series, where we examine a different set of legal issues important to contractors each month. For our second installment, we briefly examine certain key parts of Washington, DC’s...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
Anyone who works in construction and on construction projects will deal with mechanic’s liens. Sometimes referred to as construction liens or property liens, mechanic’s liens are typically statutory creations designed to...more
Mechanic’s lien claims, unlike other actions, are created by statute and, as a result, Pennsylvania courts require strict compliance with the statutory requirements to perfect the lien or risk the dismissal of the claim. By...more
On Friday, April 30, Governor Reynolds signed into law HF 561 (formerly SSB1006), a bill pertaining to mechanic’s lien. The bill goes into effect on January 1, 2022....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
On March 26, 2021, the Illinois Appellate Court issued an opinion affirming dismissal, with prejudice, of a contractor’s mechanics lien enforcement action. The decision highlights the importance of strict adherence to the...more
In response to the ongoing delays and uncertainty caused by the COVID-19 pandemic, Governor Brown signed House Bill 4212 into law in June 2020. The law contains a number of remedial measures affecting the functioning of local...more
As construction companies continue to operate under the stresses of the COVID-19 pandemic and social unrest, projects are starting and stopping as a result. These interrupted schedules, along with our overall disrupted...more
Like many states, Minnesota requires subcontractors and suppliers to send pre-lien notices to owners to perfect mechanic’s lien rights. Failure to comply with the pre-lien notice statute can prove fatal to a lien enforcement...more