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What do I do if an owner's attorney demands I use their specific lien release and cancellation form? And what if they want someone specific to also sign the lien release?

CaliforniaLien Releases

I filed a lien and now I'm about to get paid, however the property owner and her attorney are demanding I use their specific release form. The girl from our office who signed our lien no longer works here and they are demanding she sign the release as well. I'm not sure if I need to use their form to release the lien, and I don't know if I legally need the same girl who signed the lien to also sign their release.

1 reply

Apr 4, 2018

That's a tough situation. First, regarding the form of the lien release - it's not uncommon for an owner to require a lien release in a specific form. This may become a point of negotiation - while the owner has a lot of leverage, ultimately they're trying to avoid a mechanics lien foreclosure on their property. So there may be some room to negotiate - and a lien claimant shouldn't underestimate their position since their lien claim is what is spurring the payment and release. However, fighting over language might also add extra, unnecessary animosity. When push comes to shove, if payment is in hand the language of the release might not be terribly important. But if a claimant is concerned that a lien release contains unfair language, consulting a local construction attorney might be a good option to be sure that there aren't any hidden dangers in a lien release. The best way to avoid this language is obviously to agree on a clear, simple, and concise lien release. Regarding the party signing the release - it's worth noting that the party who actually signs the mechanics lien claim typically does so on behalf of the claimant/company (unless the claimant is a sole proprietor). So, while some individual physically signed a mechanics lien, that individual has no interest in the lien claim - rather, the entity/company they represented (for the purposes of the lien filing) actually filed the lien and serves as the lien claimant. Thus, anyone who is authorized to release the lien on behalf of the lien claimant may sign the lien release, even when that would result in two different individuals signing a claim and release. This may be a tough hurdle to get over, but explaining the situation to the party requesting the release might go a long way toward resolving the issue.

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