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Is environmental remediation work lienable?

We have a customer that does environmental remediation. I am attempting to secure several projects but am unsure if this is something that I can secure. I have owner info but am having trouble finding General Contractor info and am not sure that there are GCs.

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Feb 2, 2018

Whether work is lienable will depend on whether the work performed fits into the New York mechanic lien statute. New York grants pretty broad lien rights, though. Specifically, "A contractor, subcontractor, laborer, materialman, landscape gardener, nurseryman or person or corporation selling fruit or ornamental trees, roses, shrubbery, vines and small fruits, who performs labor or furnishes materials for the improvement of real property with the consent or at the request of the owner... or of his agent, contractor or subcontractor... shall have a lien for the principal and interest, of the value, or the agreed price, of such labor..." So it would seem that, as long as real property was improved pursuant to an agreement, lien rights will generally be available in New York. Usually a lien claimant’s tier on a project is inconsequential (except for suppliers). There are some exceptions, however. A lien claimant must be licensed to do the work (if a license is required for that type of work), and a claimant must be authorized to do business in New York. Otherwise, they will not be able to validly claim a lien. Regarding the identification of parties, it's important to remember that under the New York lien statute, a "contractor" refers to "a person who enters into a contract with the owner of real property for the improvement thereof..." So, while a party might not traditionally be considered a GC, for the purposes of the New York lien statute, if their contract is directly with an owner, they will be considered a contractor on the project.

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