I have a mechanic lien in Michigan. Was told it does not expire. Now told it does after 1 year.
Courts are shut down and cannot do anything due to the virus. Does it expire?
4 replies
May 7, 2020
Hello, thank you for your question. There is a common misconception throughout the building industry that a lien lasts forever once filed.
Per Michigan Law, a construction lien needs to be filed within 90 days of last providing labor and materials to the job. Prior to filing the lien you are required to file a notice of furnishing. After the lien is filed, you have 1 year to file a lawsuit to foreclose on the lien. If you fail to file the lawsuit, the lien is no longer useful. During the shutdown, although the courts are closed, you are still able to file a complaint in most jurisdictions in order to meet the 1 year deadline.
If you require assistance in a foreclosure lawsuit, please feel free to call my office, Willis Law, at 800-610-6938.
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May 7, 2020
In Michigan, it is required that an action to enforce a mechanics lien must be initiated within 1 year from the date on which the lien was recorded. Although the courts are closed / operating at a low capacity right now, a lawsuit/foreclosure may still be filed during this time. This would also assume that the lien was properly filed within the proper time period as well. If you need assistance, please feel free to call our office at 248.642.5400.
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May 7, 2020
Following up on Shaun's response, on March 23, 2020, the Michigan Supreme Court issued Administrative Order 2020-3, which may have tolled (turned off the clock) the deadline for you to foreclose your construction lien. If the one year period for filing a foreclosure suit was on or after March 23, 2020, you may still have time to act, depending on when you recorded your construction lien, but not much time. Don't wait.
Here's a link to the Supreme Court's Order - https://courts.michigan.gov/Courts/MichiganSupremeCourt/rules/court-rules-admin-matters/Administrative%20Orders/2020-08_2020-03-23_FormattedOrder_AO2020-3.pdf
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May 7, 2020
If the construction lien was timely recorded within 90 days of the last furnishing, it will expire 1 year after the date of recording if a foreclosure complaint has not been filed with the Courts. While the construction lien recording deadline was not extended by the Michigan Governor or legislature, the deadline to file a complaint has been extended due to the COVID-19 pandemic. If the deadline to file the foreclosure complaint is on or after March 10, 2020, it is extended until the end of the declared states of disaster and emergency. The courts are accepting filings, and if your complaint is still timely, you should file it as soon as possible to make sure that it is timely filed before the end of the state of emergency.