Protect Your Lien Rights with Zlien
On October 30, 2008
By Scott Wolfe Jr
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It’s Easy To Protect Your Lien Rights & Even Easier To Lose Them
Being a part of the construction industry is truly wonderful, when customers pay you, but what about those times when your customer isn’t willing to pay you for a job well done?
Unfortunately, walking around muttering expressions won’t pay your bills. Filing a mechanic’s lien on the owner’s property is often your last chance to collect on the money that is owed to you. This is where the importance of Zlien preliminary notice becomes most clear.
If you don’t process your preliminary notice, most often the penalty is that there is no allowance to file a mechanic’s lien on the owner’s property, which means that you could very well lose out 100% and collect absolutely none of the money that is owed.
Read on,you’ll be stunned at how easy it is to get “stiffed” when you don’t protect your right to lien…
In the world of construction, while it is expected that you’ll be paid for your work, unfortunately there are times when payment is not so easily forthcoming. These are the times and this is when the preliminary notice is important. The main purpose of the preliminary notice is to announce that you and your company are present and that you have a financial interest in the property. Even though your general contractor knows that you are involved, his customer may not know. It’s your legal responsibility to tell the owner that you have this claim.
Here’s why:
You’ve finished the job, and your general contractor is refusing to pay you. After you’ve gone to court and you’ve won your judgment, who is going to make sure that you get paid?
Don’t look at the judge; he’s a judge, not a bill collector.
Don’t look at the guy who owes you, he didn’t want to pay you to begin with.
So… now you’re back to where you were before you went to court – the guy still owes you and he still won’t pay you! (Except that, in addition to still not being paid, now you’re in debt to your attorney).
Out of time and money, the only thing do is file a lien on the property you did the work on but only if you’ve processed your preliminary notice.
Important: Even if the Owner has paid your customer in full, you still file the lien.
It’s the legal responsibility of the Owner to insure that everyone gets paid.
The preliminary notice MUST be mailed out within the time allowed by the law. This time frame varies from state to state, so you must check your specific state at Zlien
Lien Smarter & Get Paid!
About the Author: Scott Wolfe Jr
A construction attorney and entrepreneur. Scott is a native of New Orleans, Louisiana, obtaining his J.D. degree from Loyola University of New Orleans, and his B.A. from Southern Methodist University in Dallas, TX. In 2006, 2007 and 2008 New Orleans City Business magazine named Scott Wolfe, Jr. as one the 50 Leaders in Law. The son and grandson of general contractors, Scott Wolfe, Jr. is a construction litigator in Louisiana and Washington, and the founding member of the bi-coastal firm, Wolfe Law Group. Scott is also the founder and CEO of Express Lien, Inc., a legal document preparation service for contractors. In 2008, City Business Magazine recognized Scott as one of its Innovators of the Year for the Express Lien concept. Scott is also the founder and CEO of The Web Lab, InCharge Technology, Blog No Evil, Inc., Publius, Inc. and Two Cities Publishing, LLC.
