Home>Levelset Community>Legal Help>What does your services include for mechanic's lien?

What does your services include for mechanic's lien?

I did work as a plumbing subcontractor and have not been paid yet. Work was completed before the end of March 2020. I had no contact with the owner until recently when he asked me to produce invoices. He has paid the general contractor for his construction work but not met. I am trying to figure out if I should do a mechanic's lien. I am in Vermont. What does your service include? (I have read your material specific to Vermont on your website.) Would a mechanic's lien be better than small claims court? How to proceed?

1 reply

Apr 24, 2020

When unpaid for construction work in Vermont, there are a number of recovery tools available. As you mention above, small claims court could be an option - but, typically, mechanics liens will be more effective for forcing payment. Levelset discusses that here: File A Lien Or Go To Small Claims Court? Note, though, that a subcontractor's mechanics lien rights in Vermont are limited to the amount owed and unpaid by the owner. Vermont's lien statute protects owners from paying twice. So, if the general contractor has been fully paid, then their subs won't be able to file mechanics liens against the owner's property. Of course, filing a mechanics lien is only one recovery option - and there are a number of different recovery options that could be useful for getting paid, as Levelset discusses here: Can’t File a Lien? Here Are Some Other Options For Recovery. Additionally, payment demand letters that threaten specific legal action - like a breach of contract claim - can be really effective for getting a customer to pay what's owed. Finally, if you're looking to talk to someone at Levelset regarding the company's services, feel free to contact Levelset here via chat, phone, or email!

0 people found this helpful

Helpful