Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>That's a great question. Generally speaking, the date that materials are delivered to the project should be sufficient for the "start date" or "first furnishing" of a material supplier. It would be unlikely that a deadline for first furnishing would be based on the actions of a third party, plus sending a notice late tends to be a lot riskier than sending notice a little early. Of course, there may be some differences state-by-state, so let's look at Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio's notice requirements. First - Indiana. In Indiana, based on § 32-28-3-1, preliminary notices should be sent based on "the date of first delivery or labor performed". Thus, it would appear that, in Indiana, it would appear that the time runs from when the material is actually delivered. Looking at Kentucky, the statute doesn't really clarify what will count as "first furnishing" - so using the date when materials were delivered should be sufficient. In Ohio, under § 1311.05 of the lien statute, notice must be sent "at any time after the recording of the notice of commencement or amended notice but within twenty-one days after performing the first labor or work or furnishing the first materials..." Thus, notice may be sent at any point after the Notice of Commencement has been filed and will not be considered early, and the deadline for sending notice will be based on when material is furnished.

That's a great question. Generally speaking, the date that materials are delivered to the project should be sufficient for the "start date" or "first furnishing" of a material supplier. It would be unlikely that a deadline for first furnishing would be based on the actions of a third party, plus sending a notice late tends to be a lot riskier than sending notice a little early. Of course, there may be some differences state-by-state, so let's look at Indiana, Kentucky, and Ohio's notice requirements. First - Indiana. In Indiana, based on § 32-28-3-1, preliminary notices should be sent based on "the date of first delivery or labor performed". Thus, it would appear that, in Indiana, it would appear that the time runs from when the material is actually delivered. Looking at Kentucky, the statute doesn't really clarify what will count as "first furnishing" - so using the date when materials were delivered should be sufficient. In Ohio, under § 1311.05 of the lien statute, notice must be sent "at any time after the recording of the notice of commencement or amended notice but within twenty-one days after performing the first labor or work or furnishing the first materials..." Thus, notice may be sent at any point after the Notice of Commencement has been filed and will not be considered early, and the deadline for sending notice will be based on when material is furnished.

Thanks for the answer above. Just need clarification. So, I deliver material to my customer on September 1 who is a subcontractor for a job that starts, let say, September 1 as well. Due to issues, my customer, the sub, cant get started on the job until September 30th. Does the clock tick (to send a notice) on September 1 or September 30? Thanks!

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Aug 13, 2018

Glad you came back to the Construction Legal Center! Unfortunately, as mentioned in the previous answer, state mechanics lien statutes aren't always a great source of clarity. These statutes refer to "first furnishing" or "first delivery", but do not specifically approach the situation where materials are sent somewhere other than the project at the time of this delivery. On one hand, because the right to lien relates to the property where work is performed or material is provided, it would make sense that deadlines would be based on when materials arrive to the project property. However, on the other hand, notice and deadline requirements are often strictly construed, so taking a risk with a notice deadline could quite possibly result in a project going unprotected by lien rights. When notice is required, the safest course of action would likely be to send notice when the material supplier delivers their materials, rather than when the supplier's customer makes their way to the job site with those materials. This is the only action a supplier can control, and waiting to send notice based upon some other party's actions is definitely a risky endeavor. Plus, when in doubt, erring on the side of sending notice early is typically safer than waiting to send notice. This is especially true in states where the window for sending notice is a short one and when late notice will be insufficient to protect any rights.

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