Comments on: What Costs Can I Include in a Mechanics Lien?

By: Including Interest and Late Fees In A Colorado Mechanics Lien | Construction & Mechanics Lien Blog

Tue, 06 Dec 2011 15:00:37 +0000

[...] Kudos to the Vail Valley Blogsite for a recent article about a frequently asked question regarding how lien claimants should calculate the amount of its mechanics lien claim. We’ve written about this topic in a general sense in the post: What Costs Can I Include in a Mechanics Lien. [...]

By: Scott Wolfe Jr

Scott Wolfe Jr — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 15:36:29 +0000

Hi Lisanne – thanks for visiting and for your comment. Whenever you deal with the particular requirements of the mechanic lien’s contents, things can get tricky, and the answer will change from state to state. In some states, courts will look this issue and usually find in favor of the lien claimant. The bigger the “typo,” the less likely they are to accept the mistake.

I had a client in Louisiana bring this to a judge, where the lien was off by about $20,000. The judge allowed us to have the lien amended and reduce the lien amount by $20k (even though the lien period had expired). I don’t think the result would have been the same if we asked for the lien amount to be increased.

The law in Alaska will be different. You may want to pose your question to an online Q&A service like avvo.com. Even though I’m an attorney, I sometimes use the service as a listserv of sorts, where I can ask a bunch of other attorneys a question and get some answers about something they might know more about than me.

From a quick google search, I found that the lien content requirements for Alaska is codified in AS 34.35.070. This statute’s annotations has the following three cases summarized which may be helpful:

STATEMENT OF DEMAND MUST BE TRUE. –It is necessary that the statement of the lienors’ demand contained in the notices should be the true amount due, after making deductions for all just credits and offsets, but it is not necessary that such shall be expressly stated in the notices filed. Irvine v. McDougall, 4 Alaska 702 (D. Alaska 1913).

INCLUSION OF IMPROPER ITEM VOIDS LIEN. –Where a lien claimant includes in his lien statement an item not embraced in the statutory lien, for labor, such as for expenses of transportation, he loses his lien. Bloom v. McCluskey, 7 Alaska 349 (1925).

UNLESS MISTAKE IS HONEST AND ITEMS MAY BE SEPARATED. –The fact that a lien claimant includes in his claim, through an honest mistake, a claim for services for which the statute gives him no lien, will not defeat the lien for other services within the statute also claimed, if the two can be separated. Irvine v. McDougal, 5 Alaska 220 (D. Alaska 1915), citing Pioneer Mining Co. v. Delamotte, 185 F. 752 (9th Cir. 1911).

By: Lisanne

Lisanne — Wed, 09 Feb 2011 06:59:27 +0000

I’ve often read (and heard from colleagues) that including the wrong amount in a lien may invalidate the lien. What happens if the amount is wrong due to a mere typographical or mathematical error of less than $500? Does that invalidate the entire lien? Assuming it’s beyond th 120-days to file a new lien, what is our recourse to fix the record? Can you refer me to a resource to answer this question under Alaska law?

By: Scott Wolfe Jr

Scott Wolfe Jr — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 22:11:37 +0000

Hi Michael – Thanks for the comment. Since ConstructionLienBlog.com is not a law firm, we cannot give legal advice. And while I am personally an attorney, I only practice in WA, OR and LA (not NY). As such, you should consult with an attorney licensed in your area for legal advice specific to your question.

I will also recommend the attorney directory site http://www.avvo.com, where you can find a listing of relevant attorneys and ask questions to attorneys online.

By: MIchael

MIchael — Wed, 20 Oct 2010 22:01:17 +0000

In New York. Can a mechanics lien be filed upon a property that has been foreclosed? which now the bank now owns?