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Lien deadline issues in Florida

FloridaCollectionsLien Deadlines

I'm a staffing agency in Florida and we filed a lien against a company who hasn't paid us for labor we provided in October 2022. Last day onsite was 10/30/22 and we filed on 1/30/23. They hired an attorney to send us a letter to state that, among other defects, we didn't send a notice of intent to lien within 45 days of our last day onsite. I'm now wondering what our recourse should be in this situation and changes we need to make going forward. Thanks.

4 replies

Mar 23, 2023

I am assuming that your contract was with the general contractor on the project. According to your statement your lien was filed timely (90 days or the first business day thereafter, from completing your work). "Temporary help firms" can be subcontractors under Florida's Construction Lien Law. This is because the Legislature amended the law in 2001 to include such firms after an appellate court had ruled in 2000 that the firms did not qualify as "laborers." They still don't, but they are subcontractors. But as a subcontractor, you were required to deliver a "Notice to Owner" (a statutory form that is not known by any other name or variation thereof) within 45 days of commencing work. If you did not do so, you do not have lien rights. You would neverthless have the right to bring suit against the contracting party to recover the debt owed to your company. Either way, I recommend that you consult with an attorney about your situation sooner rather than later.

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Mar 23, 2023

Would you be able to consult or recommend someone to me?

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Mar 23, 2023

You may e-mail me your contact information and the location of the project: basslawoffice@comcast.net 

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Mar 24, 2023

This is why you should hire a construction attorney for all construction related issues. There is no such notice in Florida.

 

On the other hand, you should have filed within 90 days of final furnishing (not three months), and you waited 92 days, which invalidates your lien.

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