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Can I file mechanic lien ?

I'm supplier. Material on 12/19/19. And it's installed on driveway The homeowner is State Trooper so we can not search who owns the house. He said he already pay the contractor, so it's not his problem. The contractor disappear and don't pay us either In this case, can we file mechanic lien? We come to State Trooper's house on 02/14, he said he never sign owner name when he received the mail so we can't file lien, he said he aked the lawyer already. I sound like homeowner and contractor try to not paid. What should we do?

1 reply

Feb 19, 2020

Material suppliers in Florida must meet certain requirements and follow certain rules in order to claim a valid and enforceable mechanics lien. One of these requirements is that a preliminary notice must be provided by all parties who did not contract directly with the property owner. This Notice to Owner is required to be provided within earlier of several dates: (a) 45 days after first providing labor or materials; (b) 45 days when work begins on making specialty materials; or (c) Before owner's final payment to prime contractor under its contract. If this preliminary notice is required and is sent late it is fatal to the claimant's rights to file a valid mechanics lien. If material is provided to a project on 12/19/19, preliminary notice would have needed to be provided by the earlier of February 2, 2020 or when the property owner paid the GC. Parties who do contract directly with the property owner do not have this notice to owner requirement, and can proceed directly with filing their lien against the property. The lien must be filed within 90 days of last furnishing labor or material to the project, and served on the property owner within 15 days of the lien filing. I'm not sure what is meant by some parts of your question, related to the property owner / state trooper / contract signature relationship. It may be a good idea to get a local attorney to look over your documents, to better determine any potential lien applicability. If you do not wish to obtain an attorney, depending on the amount due, you may be able to pursue recovery of what is owed through small claims court. In Florida, small claims court can adjudicate disputes of up to $8,000.

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