As a subcontractor, I filed a residential lien for monies owed to me by the general contractor, he hired a law firm notifying me of a lawsuit to release the liens because they were not filed properly or else they will sue me up to 15k. Now, I understand after researching that one of the liens was way pass the 2.5 months allowed. If I have to release, how can I still pursue the 1k he owes me ? Thank you
Hello,
In all honesty, court is not the worst place for you. If he sues you, you release the lien and countersue him. Just because your lien was not correctly filed does not mean that you lose out on the money that he owes you. You would save $400 if he sued you first. The rest of it is what you would have had to deal with anyway to pursue enforcement of the remainder of your lien or if you chose to sue him for your remaining money.
E. Aaron Cartwright III
214.789.1354
Aaron@EACLawyer.com
If you know that your lien is invalid, you should release the invalid lien. Under the circumstances, with knowledge that your lien is invalid, you could be violating the Texas Fraudulent Lien Act, which can impose statutory damages of $10,000, or actual damages, whichever is greater, plus attorney's fees. You really don't want to give the owner a legitimate claim against you with an opportunity to recover attorney's fees.
You should retain a construction attorney to evaluate your legal position to determine if any of your lien(s) are legitimate, and to provide advice as to how to proceed.
Keep in mind that the general contractor may be liable for all of your claim, and you should consider suing the general contractor.
Good luck.