Chart Explaining Miller Act Claim Rights and Deadlines

We spend so much time talking about Mechanic Liens here at the Construction Lien Blog we sometimes overlook the equivalent tool available to contractors and suppliers on federal projects – claims under the Miller Act.    Of course, we have (see here).   And of course, Express Lien is experienced in preparing and filing Miller Act Claims for contractors and suppliers across the country.

The good news about the Miller Act’s requirements is that they are the same across the country.   As such, contractors on federal projects need only be familiar with one set of rules.   The bad news, however, is that the requirements are often misstated.

To make things easy, we created this chart.

Lien Smarter, Eat a Shrimp Po-Boy…and Get Paid

Let’s discuss Express Lien over a shrimp po boy!

If you’re in town visiting New Orleans for the roofing convention, Express Lien would love to discuss the benefits of our service. Express Lien’s New Orleans office is located steps from the famous St. Charles Avenue street car line.  Call (866-720-5436) or email.  It’s our treat.

The Int’l Roofing Expo is the must-attend event for roofing professionals to stay abreast of market directions, trends and cutting-edge technology.  Exhibits & Conference this year is in New Orleans, LA, from February 22-24, 2010.

http://www.TheRoofingExpo.com

Take a break from the conference and let us treat you to lunch.

Contractors Using Mobile Software in 2010?

One of our favorite publications – Constructech – recently published a web article titled “Making the Most of Mobility.”  The article suggests that emerging mobile software and technologies are enabling construction companies to improve their project collaboration.

What are some good examples of using mobile applications to help out in the field?  How about all those change orders that can’t get signed because construction projects just move too quickly?  Wouldn’t it be nice to have the owner or the contractor sign something on the spot, right on your iPhone or other mobile device?

Well, all that stuff is certainly on its way, but what about us at Express Lien – are we going to be releasing anything that helps folks file and manage notices and liens on-the-go.

Duh!

We don’t have anything announce quite yet, but keep your eyes open for the launch of mobile apps that allow you and your company to easily see and manage notices, liens, deadlines and more.

Stay tuned.

Illinois Makes One Small Change to Lien Statute that affects General Contractors

Effective on the first of this year (Jan 1 2010), reports are abound that the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act contains an amendment that changes the notice requirements for contractors on owner-occupied single family residences.

Section 7 of the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act has been amended to include the following language:

(d) A contractor for improvements of an owner-occupied single-family residence must give the owner written notice within 10 days after recording a lien against any property of the owner.   The notice is served when it is sent or personally delivered.  If timely notice is not given and, as a result, the owner has suffered damages before notice is given, the lien is extinguished to the extent of the damages.  The mere recording of the lien claim is not considered damages.  This subsection does not apply to subcontractors, and it applies only to contracts entered into after the effective date of this amendment [January 1, 2010].

Read the full text of the Public Act on the Illinois General Assembly website.

So, starting January 1, 2010, all original contractors on owner-occupied single family residences must give this notice to the owner post-filing a lien.

If you order your lien through Express Lien, sit back and relax, because we always send notice to the owner, certified mail.

Related articles by Zemanta

• Lien Law Online eLert for 1/13/2010 – Illinois (lienlawonline.blogspot.com)
• Can a Sub Still Have a Valid Lien Without Supplying an Owner The Required 60-Day Notice?… An Exception to Weather-Tite? – Crawford Supply Co. v. Schwartz, et al. (illinoisconstructionlawblog.com)

Is Utah’s SCR (State Construction Registry) A Model For Rest of States?

Since 2005, Utah has maintained a standardized, state-wide system for filing preliminary notices, notices of commencement and notices of completion – the State Construction Registry, or SCR.  The result?  Any supplier, contractor or other interested party can log into the system, search for a project, and know exactly when it started and begun, and who is working on it.

This is a huge time-saver for folks working on construction projects in Utah.    We know the frustration contractors and suppliers have in other states, because we experience them ourselves at Express Lien.

The property records offices in counties across the country can be an absolute mess.   Sometimes, its next to impossible for a subcontractor or supplier to locate the legal proeprty description for a parcel of land, the name of the property owner, and whether anything has been filed on the project.    Even though its incredibly hard to find this information, the contractor or supplier may still be responsible to know it.

Imagine if across the country this information was inputted into standardized online registry of construction projects?    That’s how things work in Utah.

In and out of Utah, one of the most compelling selling features of the Express Lien service is that we make things simple for you.    After all, running your construction or supply business is difficult enough that you shouldn’t have to be research experts, or monitor lien and notice requirements across the 50 states.   How is this for simple:   You give us the project details, and our staff researches the property owner and the legal property description for you.

This can save your company hours, and since we’re more experienced at searching for this data, our search results are reliable.

Even thought the information is more accessible in Utah, that doesn’t nullify our utility.   You give us the project information, and we do the legal work.   Forget about spending an hour or two figuring out the SCR system, or having to followup with the city, or having to verify information by doing research online.

Express Lien is the smarter way to lien, and we guarantee it.

We Can Help You Lien Smarter – And We Guarantee It

A deal is not a deal until… their check clears the bank.

Express Lien understands the mechanics of getting paid within the construction industry, and that full and final payment is a challenging aspect of your business.

Express Lien’s full service guarantee offers peace of mind.

In the event, your company is paid before the lien document is recorded within the county, we will refund your money! Express Lien loves to hear about you getting paid.

Therefore, you can make the deal with Express Lien and if your deal produces payment before the lien is recorded……that’s a good deal for us, too.

Place the order. Make payment happen.

Christopher Hill Launches Great Resource for Virginia Mechanic Liens

Our friend at Construction Law Musings, Virginia construction attorney Christopher Hill, just add a really great resource to his top-notch construction law blog for those interested in construction liens.   A Mechanic’s Lien Page.

Before the lien page, Musings was already a great source of  information on Virginia lien laws.   The new page really organizes that data.

Here are a few of the articles you can find within the new section:

A Lien By Any Other Name Can Sound Just As Sweet (written by yours truly)

Q:  What can you lien?  A: What did you bring to the project?

Contracts, Liens and Notices

Enjoy.

(P.S. If you’re looking for information on Virginia’s lien scheme right here at the Construction Lien Blog, you can just check out our Virginia tag.    It even includes a post by Chris Hill).

These Folks Love Us on Twitter- Do You?

Hey, our blog is pretty cool….but, should you follow us on Twitter, you’d be blown away. That is, of course, if you find the topic of mechanics liens to be as fascinating as we do. And if not, we throw in a few comments about our beloved New Orleans Saints here and there to make the strictly technical talk bearable.

We’ve created a mosaic of some of our Twitter followers. These are just a few of the people who love what we do online.

Get your twitter mosaic here.

We’d be thrilled to add you to the list. Follow us today, and we’ll show you how to Lien Smarter.

You May Only Get One Shot To File Your Mechanics Lien

In the past, we’ve posted about the importance of filing your lien timely and correctly.   Just a small defect in the legal property description, or the omission of something in the contents of the lien can render your lien null and void.

As soon as a lien claimant has their lien challenged as improper, the first thing they want to do is file an amendment.    And this brings us to a very important question:  Can you amend a defective lien?

In most states, claimants are only allowed to amend the lien to include missing information only if the amendment is made before the original lien period expires.

I stumbled upon a case out of North Carolina addressing this issue.    In Gaston Grading v. Young, the NC Court of Appeals explained this general rule:

…if plaintiff wished to correct the mistakes of its second lien, plaintiff was required to cancel the second lien and substitute a new claim of lien containing the correct information. Plaintiff failed to do so within the prescribed time and thus, its claim of lien is void.

While each state’s treatment of this issue may differ, it does seem the be the dominant rule in the United States.   I practice law in Washington, Oregon and Louisiana, and those three states treat amended liens similarly to North Carolina.

This is why I’ve titled this post, “You May Only Get One Shot To File Your Mechanics Lien.”  While you can – in theory – amend the lien if you make a mistake, you’re still stuck with the time restrictions of your state.   When you file the lien the first time, you should get it right.

Michigan Lien Recovery Fund Raises White Flag

Cavanaugh & Quesada, PLC’s Michigan Construction Law Update posted an troubling blog post just before the end of the year concerning the Michigan Lien Recovery Fund.

In plain language, the Michigan Lien Recovery Fund is a self-sustaining fund that steps in and pays lien claims on residential properties.   A homeowner can avoid paying for work twice by dumping claimants to the fund, and claimants can recover money owed by seeking judgment against the fund (as opposed to the homeowner).

There are some rules, restrictions and limitations, of course (such as a $75k cap per residential structure)…but in theory, the whole thing works out.

As the turbulent 2009 comes to a close, however, there is trouble with the Michigan Lien Recovery Fund:  it’s completely out of money.

Earlier in December, the Department of Engery, Labor and Economic Growth posted this update about the status of the Fund on their website:

At the present time, the Fund has become essentially insolvent, with a declining balance and an ineffective funding source to cover pending claims. The Department is seeking to repeal the Fund through legislative action.

According to the DELEG and Michigan Construction Law Update, the lack of money is fact, and not fiction:

The Fund is currently involved in over 250 pending lawsuits involving more than 350 claims against it that total more than $18 million. In 2009, Judgments against the Fund have averaged $123,800 per month. By mid-October, there was only $524,000 remaining in Fund coffers.  (from Mich. Construction Law Update)

The Fund sought a judicial remedy to the situation, but they received an adverse ruling in court.   For the time being, everyone involved is really stuck between a rock and a hard place (homeowners are exposed, claimants don’t know where to turn, the Fund is a lame duck, etc.).

This doesn’t / won’t necessarily affect a Michigan contractor or supplier’s lien and claim rights, but it certainly implicates the method of foreclosing upon claims.  Stay tuned.