HI, I hired a Asphalt company to pave my yard in April 2019 and I paid him in full. Now; the supplier wants to put lien on my property because of my contractor didn’t pay for material around 32k. The contractor is filing bankruptcy. I did not receive any lien notice either from contractor or supplier at the time of signing the contract. Can they put lien on my property? What do I need to do? Thanks,
Good afternoon,
It sounds like there are a few things that need to be done. First, was your project completed last year? If so, the supplier's lien (recorded now) is almost certainly untimely. And if you never received a preliminary notice, that is also a problem for the supplier. Feel free to provide some more information!
Court notices? What kind of court notices? Sounds like you need to engage an attorney as soon as possible as if you do not respond timely to the summons and complaint (assuming those are the court notices you are referring to), you could have a default judgment entered against you.
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 if they do put a lien on. I’ve written many such letters for my clients in the past. Feel free to call me if you have any questions.
Cathleen M. Curl, Esq.
Law Office of Cathleen M. Curl
700 El Camino Real, Suite 200
Millbrae, CA 94030
T 650-871-5955
F 650-588-7101
The asphalt company only has lien rights if they served you with preliminary notice within 20 days of providing the asphalt or if there is some other way they can demonstrate that you had actual knowledge that they were supplying the asphalt at the time. Further, this asphalt company only has 90 days from project completion to record a lien. So if the project was completed more than 90 days ago, and no lien has been recorded, the asphalt company is too late to record a valid lien.
At this point you may want to express to them that their lien would be invalid for the reasons stated above to deter them from recording a lien. While the lien would be invalid, they could still record it. If the lien is recorded you have the option of posting a bond to release the lien, immedietly petitioning a court to release it (assuming it is invalid), or waiting 90 days for it to expire unless they move ahead with a lawsuit to enforce. If they move a head with a lawsuit to enforce you would fight the validity via a motion in that lawsuit.
But best at this point to demonstrate to them why any lien would be invalid.
If the supplier didn’t send you a Preliminary Notice, then they have no lien rights against your property. When that happens, I generally write a strong letter to the supplier or their attorney explaining the lien and demanding that they immediately release the lien against the property. I also enclose a Release of Lien form for them to sign and return. This works probably 90% of the time. If they still don’t release the lien, you can wait out the 90 day lien period and then file a petition with the court to have the court release the lien for you if they haven’t filed suit to foreclose the lien.
The laws regarding construction liens and their enforcement can vary depending on your location. However, I can offer some general insights: Liens and payment disputes: In some jurisdictions, suppliers and subcontractors may have the right to file a lien on a property if they haven't been paid for materials or services provided. Even if you paid your contractor in full, if they didn't pay their suppliers, those suppliers may still have a valid claim against your property. I'd like to buy one on the side somewhere, like this , but want to hear others' experiences. Notice requirements: In many places, there are notice requirements that suppliers and subcontractors need to fulfill to protect their right to file a lien. These requirements could include sending a preliminary notice within a specific time frame after providing materials or services. If the necessary notices were not given, the lien claim might be invalid. Bankruptcy: If your contractor is filing for bankruptcy, it can complicate matters. In some cases, bankruptcy proceedings may stay or suspend the enforcement of liens or other claims against the contractor or their assets.
Thanks for the info.