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Can we file a mechanical lien?

Afternoon, My name is Luigi Racanelli and I work for Imperial Cleaning Company. We were hired by the GC of Titan Realty and Construction to perform final construction cleanup at 840 Fulton Street. This was done in March 2019. As of this date we have not been paid. The Building Owner is stating that we did not clean up to standard, however; we were cleaning while they were still doing construction. So we have been looking into filing a lien on them but I wanted to make sure we were in the timeframe or if this is even the right way to attack this.

1 reply

Aug 20, 2019

Mechanics lien protection is pretty broad in New York. Those who provide construction work which permanently improves the project property will generally be entitled to file a mechanics lien. Note, though, that in order for work to give rise to mechanics lien rights - that work must be "permanent" in nature. So, things like solid waste removal from a construction site, hauling debris off the site, etc. might give rise to lien rights. However, less-intensive cleaning functions that might be more "maintenance" in nature might not give rise to lien rights. If the property isn't permanently affected by the work, chances are, mechanics lien rights will not arise. And, of course, where some work done is lienable and other work provided might not be, that work that is lienable could give rise to a valid and enforceable mechanics lien claim. Deadlines The deadline for a New York mechanics lien claim will depend on the project itself. For commercial work, the lien deadline will generally be 8 months from last furnishing labor or materials to the project. So, if fewer than 8 months have passed since the last date when work was performed, the lien deadline will not have passed. For single-family residential projects, the deadline is shortened to 4 months from the last furnishing date. Finally, keep in mind that when unpaid on a New York construction project, there are always other options for recovering payment. Levelset discusses some of those here: Options for Recovery Outside of the Mechanics Lien Process.

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