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Can lien be extended after the 1 year deadline in New York State?

New YorkLien Deadlines

I filed a Mechanics lien in Manhattan County on a commercial project back on December 20, 2019. I did not extend it prior to the 1 year anniversary. Am I still able to extend it, or file a new lien against the same company/dollar amount at this time?

6 replies

Jul 27, 2021
It depends. the lien you filed is dead, unless you are able to get a court to revive it. if it is within 8 months of your last work on the project, you may file a new lien. You may have other options, you should consult counsel.
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Jul 27, 2021
The lien expired 1 year after it is filed. It cannot be revived once its dead. If you did work within the last 8 months, you can refile a lien.
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Jul 27, 2021
Liens are a "creature of statute," which means deadlines are very strict, there is very little wiggle room here. It is highly unlikely that you have lien rights at this point in time, with very limited exception.
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Jul 27, 2021

Generally, New York mechanics liens may be extended on commercial projects by filing an extension, or by petitioning the court within the one year deadline to enforce the claim. However, the key is to take action prior to the lien's expiration. There has been some wiggle room in the past concerning the extension of liens that have already expired, but that case dealt with a petition to the court that was timely filed, but not delivered to the Justice prior to the expiration; which doesn't appear to apply to your issue.

Furthermore, once a claim has expired, a new claim for the same labor and/or materials under the same contract will be invalid.

Note though, that even if lien rights have lapsed, there are still other legal remedies available to recover payment such as actions against your hiring party under breach of contract or unjust enrichment, or claims under the NY prompt payment laws

You should reach out to a local NY construction attorney personally to discuss these options in more detail. 

Here are some additional resources that may prove helpful:

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Jul 28, 2021

You can’t extend it….and if it is a private improvement you can’t re-file as you can only file a lien within 8 months of your last work on the project.

 

 

If the project was public works, you may be able to re-file, since liens can be filed within 30 days of project completion and acceptance.

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Jul 31, 2021
You might be able to do it an rely upon the Governor's extension of deadlines because of Covid.
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