Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>In Colorado, how do you define “substantial completion" or "project completion” ?

In Colorado, how do you define “substantial completion" or "project completion” ?

A material company filed a lien on my property 10 months ago. They must bring actions no longer than 6 months after the project was completed. In Colorado, how do you define “substantial completion" or "project completion” ? It is when the project was ready for final inspection? When the Certificate of Occupancy received?

1 reply

Jun 21, 2019

That's a good question. Determining what exactly constitutes final completion can be a tough task, and there's not always a concrete marker for when a project should be considered "complete". Levelset wrote this article on the subject to shed a little light: What Constitutes Substantial Completion? Why Does it Matter?. Reading that article, I think, will be helpful here. Still, let's look at Colorado's lien statute.

Under CRS § 38-22-109, particularly section (7), "completion" in Colorado seems to follow the general rule. Section (7) states that trivial imperfections or omissions from the work won't prevent a project from being considered "complete". So, it would seem that Colorado's completion timeframe follows the general rule described in the article linked above: When the obligations under the contract for work are substantially completed, the project will be considered "complete", and things like final inspections and a certificate of occupancy can be helpful in showing when a project was completed. Though, a project could certainly be considered substantially complete before a certificate or final inspection has taken place. But, small things like punch list work, warranty work, or repairs won't postpone the completion date.

Finally, here are some resources I think might be helpful when a lien has been filed:
(1) A Mechanics Lien Was Filed on My Property – What Do I Do Now?
(2) Improper Lien Filed on Your Property? Here’s What to Do.

0 people found this helpful

Helpful