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The Law Office Of Cathleen M. Curl

700 El Camino Real Suite 200
San Francisco, California
(650) 871-5955
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About The Law Office Of Cathleen M. Curl
CATHLEEN M. CURL specializes in handling problems relating to the construction industry, including payment disputes, contract negotiations, contract preparation and revisions, stop notices, mechanic's liens, bonds, construction defect litigation, and other matters. She received her B.A. from Stanford University in 1974, and her law degree from the University of Santa Clara in 1978. She has been engaged in the construction industry exclusively for over twenty-five years. A member of the California Bar, she is admitted to practice before the United States Supreme Court, and all of the various Federal and State Courts in California. She is also a member of the Real Property Section of the California Bar Association, is past president and a current Director of the Peninsula Builders Exchange, and has served as an arbitrator for the American Arbitration Association, the California Contractors State License Board, the Arbitration and Mediation Association, Inc. , and the San Mateo County Superior Court, and is a Judge Pro Tem for the San Mateo County Superior Court. She is AV rated (the highest rating) by Martindale-Hubbell. She also has been selected as a Super Lawyer for the past 10 years (top 5% of attorneys in Northern California) by Thomas Reuters and the publishers of S.F. Magazine. She has been involved in many phases of construction law, representing owners, contractors, construction managers, suppliers, subcontractors, engineers, condominium associations, and sureties. She has prepared and negotiated claims and has prosecuted and defended suits before arbitration tribunals, state and federal courts, and various governmental agencies. She has given seminars for various professional organizations on construction claims, mechanic's liens, stop notices and contract performance. Ms. Curl is also a co-author of California Mechanic's Liens and Other Construction Remedies (4th ed. CEB 2018). Ms. Curl's clients include both large and small general contractors, subcontractors, homeowners, material suppliers, owners, condominium associations, and engineers.
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Recent Posts from The Law Office Of Cathleen M. Curl
Sep 4, 2020
From an Anonymous Contractor
CaliforniaLien DeadlinesLien ForeclosureLien Waivers
A supplier can legally lien your property IF then previously sent you a Preliminary Notice by certified mail. If they didn’t, they have no lien rights against you or
your property. They can only go against the contractor that hired them. The best way to handle this is to have an attorney write the supplier a strong letter
telling them they have no lien rights since they didn’t timely and properly serve you with a preliminary notice and threaten them with legal action iSee More...
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Jun 14, 2023
From an Anonymous Contractor
California
You might have more time than you think you do. The lien period is based on completion of the entire project not just your work. You must file your lien within
90 days of completion of the project. (The time is shortened to 30 days if a Notice of Completion was recorded but those are mostly found on public jobs.) So
if you’re a sub, you look to when the project was finished which most likely will be sometime AFTER your work was done to start the lien clock tickiSee More...
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Jun 7, 2023
From an Anonymous Contractor
CaliforniaConstruction ContractMechanics LienPreliminary Notice
Even without a lien, you can still sue the GC who hired you for breach of contract for not paying you. The statute of limitations for breach of a written
contract is 4 years so you should still have time. For a large project like this, you should check to see if the GC posted a payment bond to guarantee payment
to subs and suppliers. Don’t ask the GC, ask the owner for this information. This could help you put pressure on the GC to pay you. I’m happy to anSee More...
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Jun 7, 2023
From an Anonymous Contractor
CaliforniaMechanics Lien
Your lien period is based on completion of the project as a whole, not just your work. So you need to know when the project was completed. If there’s no
Notice of Completion recorded (usually on public jobs), a sub has 90 days from completion of the project to record their lien. If there was a Notice of
Completion recorded, then you have 30 days from the recording date of the NOC to file your lien. I like to use the date the project passed final insSee More...
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Feb 20, 2021
From an Anonymous Contractor
CaliforniaLien Priority
If you are a contractor and were hired directly by the owner, then you don’t need to send a Preliminary Notice (unless a lender is involved).  You would know
if there was a lender because they would have asked you for a copy of your contractor’s license ahead of time, and your payments would have come from
the bank and not the owner.  The purpose of the preliminary notice is to let the owner who has lien rights on their property that they didn’t hire.  IfSee More...
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