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Is a subcontractor required to file a separate 20 day notice for a property with two ongoing, separately funded projects at the same address?

CaliforniaPreliminary Notice

Is a subcontractor required to file a separate 20 day notice for a property with two ongoing, separately funded projects at the same address? The Owner is the same, but a portion of the work is under a separate contract and is bank funded, while the original contract is Owner funded.

1 reply

Feb 6, 2019

That's an excellent question, and it's one we get pretty often at the Construction Legal Center. When a party was hired under two separate contracts to perform work on the same property, whether or not they'll need to submit two preliminary notices may come down to their customers' roles on the project. Under § 8206(a) of the California Civil Code, "Except as provided in subdivision (b), a claimant need give only one preliminary notice to each person to which notice must be given under this chapter with respect to all work provided by the claimant for a work of improvement. " Section (b) continues, "If a claimant provides work pursuant to contracts with more than one subcontractor, the claimant shall give a separate preliminary notice with respect to work provided pursuant to each contract. " (emphasis added). Thus, it would appear that the only time multiple preliminary notices would be necessary is when the same party was hired to perform work under two separate contracts for two separate subcontractors. Still, for a cautious prospective claimant, the safest route to proceed may be to provide two separate preliminary notices. At worst, the cost of sending extra notice would be minimal, and there's no reason to believe that sending two separate notices would have a negative effect. For more on California preliminary notices, the following resources should be helpful: (1) California Lien & Notice FAQs, and (2) What Is a California 20-Day Preliminary Notice?

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