Believe it or not, the Internet is full of really great news and information about mechanics liens…and it gets fuller by the hour. Literally.
Here at the Construction Payment Blog we try our best to write posts concerning important updates to mechanic lien laws, or to point out relevant news stories out there that offer lessons about mechanic liens…but it’s so difficult to relay everything! As such, we’re going to start a new segment here called the “Mid-Week Review.” Each Wednesday, we’ll post links and short commentary on the law changes, news articles, cases and commentary out there that relate to mechanic liens, preliminary notices, bond claims or miller act claims.
It’s Wednesday now…so here goes:
Mechanic Lien Cases and Law Updates
New Jersey Construction Lien Law Revisions Clear First Hurdle (read)
Thanks to New Jersey’s Cole Scholtz for posting an article on their JD Supra page concerning progress on the state’s consideration of changes to the New Jersey Construction Lien Law (N.J.S.A. 2A:44A-1, et seq.). It recently passed the NJ Assembly unanimously, and is now moving along to the Senate. We previously wrote about these pending changes.
Missouri Lien Law Changes Signed Into Law – Effective Nov 1 (read)
Home Builders Association of St. Louis and Eastern Missouri posted an update on their blog that Missouri’s Governor Nixon has signed the Lien Law Changes bill into law this week. We previously wrote about this bill on our blog here. The changes take effect on November 1st.
Minnesota Contract Provision Created Lien Waiver – Which Is Invalid (read)
Kraus-Anderson Construction v. Superior Vista LLC was decided by the Minn. Court of Appeals last week, considering a contract provision that impacted a general contractor’s lien rights. The court found that where the general contractor entered into an agreement with a project’s owner and lenders stating that the contractor agreed “not to . . . assert or file any mechanics’ or materialmans’ lien now or hereafter existing or to sue upon or collect or receive payment of,” until a lender’s claim has been paid in full, the provision created a “de facto” mechanic’s lien waiver, which is a violation of Minn. Stat. sec. 337.10, subd. 2. Read the full case opinion here.
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Other News and Articles
What Is The Last Day of Substantial Work in Idaho? (read)
One of our favorite websites – Avvo.com – lets consumers and businesses ask questions to licensed attorneys…for free. Someone in Idaho just posed this question, which is an important question in determining when a lien is or is not timely. This question was answered for Idaho specially on Avvo.com, and you can read the question and answer here.
Fewer Mechanic Lien Filings in 2010 – Good or Bad News for Economy? (read)
Louisville, KY’s business journal is reporting that a specific county there has seen a pretty drastic reduction in mechanic lien filings. Not sure what this says about the rest of the country’s filing stats, but it begs the question in this article – is fewer mechanic liens a good or bad sign for the construction industry?
Massachusetts Mechanic Lien Digest (read)
The Massachusetts Real Estate Blog (operated by Vetstein Law Group) just posted a great primer on mechanic lien law in that state. You can find more information on Massachusetts mechanic liens and preliminary notices right here on our blog, too, at the Massachusetts tag.
Beauty and Aggravation of the Mechanics Lien (read)
Ned Pelger, P.E. runs an excellent and informative website at ConstructionKnowledget.net, and he recently posted on his blog about this blog and the importance of mechanic liens in general. First, a big thanks to Ned for the mention. Second, Ned’s post (and site) contains some great overview information about why liens are important.