Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>Info that your legal counsel sent to me contradicts itself so I need some clarification. In Illinois a General Contractor can file a lien up to 4 mos after a job was done or has up to 2 years? I read both in your reply. Which is correct?

Info that your legal counsel sent to me contradicts itself so I need some clarification. In Illinois a General Contractor can file a lien up to 4 mos after a job was done or has up to 2 years? I read both in your reply. Which is correct?

We filed a lien with Zlien and the customer hired an atty to write us a letter to drop it or else. He said that we were beyond the date of being able to file a lien. Contract is dated 1/28/17 and we filed the lien 7/2/18, nineteen months later. NO WORK WAS DONE ON THIS CONTRACT, BUT WE ORDERED THE CUSTOM MATERIALS AND PAID FOR THEM AND CUSTOMER WOULD NOT RETURN OUR MANY CALLS TO SET THE INSTALL DATE AND IS BEYOND HIS 3 DAY RIGHT OF RECISSION. PLEASE ADVISE.

1 reply

Oct 1, 2018

Both are correct, and not contradictory. The deadline in Illinois can be a little bit confusing, since it is a two-part deadline.

The deadline to file a mechanics lien that is effective against the original owner and all third parties is 4 months from the completion of work. The deadline to file a lien that is effective against the original owner only is 2 years from completion of the work.

Note, however, that, as mentioned before, the above information only comes into play when a mechanics lien is warranted as an appropriate method of protection. Illinois does not specifically address potential mechanics liens for "specially fabricated material" outside of an actual work of improvement. Absent specific statutory language otherwise, mechanics liens generally require an actual improvement to the property to be charged with the lien.

In situations in which a mechanics lien may not be the appropriate remedy, there are still other ways to recover. To the extent that there was an agreement breached by a customer, a lawsuit for breach of contract may be the way to go. If the amount at issue is less than $10,000 small claims court may even be an option to provide for a more streamlined and quicker legal process.

Property owners challenging the validity of a mechanics lien is not uncommon, nobody wants to have a lien on their property, and there are many intricate rules and requirements necessary to claim a valid and enforceable lien. To the extent you are uncomfortable with the situation you find yourself in with a demand to release your lien claim, it is a good idea to enlist the help of a local attorney to examine the particular facts of your situation and provide advice on how to move forward, or to assist you in moving forward in the direction you choose.

0 people found this helpful

Helpful