I have filled a mechanics lean against a customer that decided that he wanted the job for free. I filed that lean in 2019 and Levelset did it for me. Obviously, something happened that this customer had his Lawyer contact me saying that his customer is prepared to satisfy the lean and that I should write a satisfaction letter and put it in escrow. So my question is how do you write a satisfaction letter?. Are there form letter that I can make use of? How do you put in a letter in escrow? Additionally, I would like to find out if by law I am allowed to charge the customer the fees that I incurred to create this lean and if I am allowed to calculate and charge interest on the money that is outstanding since 2019. Looking forward to your reply. Sincerely I Thaler
You are being misinformed by the owner's attorney. Once the lien has been paid, the claimant has an affirmative responsibility to discharge the satisfied lien, but you have no obligation to draft anything until the lien is paid. If the lawyer is giving you a hard time, ask him or her that you will file the discharge promptly as required by NJ statute.
Levelset provides a sample form for discharging a paid lien in NJ here:
https://www.levelset.com/lien-release/new-jersey-discharge-of-public-lien-form/
Don't draft anything until you get paid!
Thanks, Colin