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what labor off site for repairs is lienable

New YorkMechanics Lien

what case law supports dismissal when a contractor who rents equipment and alleges repair work and files a lien for repair work in New York

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Mar 25, 2020
Mechanics lien rights will generally be available any time that a claimant's work has provided a permanent physical improvement to the project property. When a claimant's work isn't actually performed at the project site, the availability of rights will get tricky. New York provides great protection to specialty material fabricators, but other off-site work (like repairing equipment that will be used on-site) is likely not lienable. In New York, mechanics lien rights are available when an "improvement" occurs to the project property. And, § 2(4) defines an improvement to be pretty strictly tied to the property itself. While someone who rents machinery or equipment to the project for the work will have lien rights for providing an improvement, nothing in that section seems to provide lien rights for repairing equipment that's being used. Still - the cost of transporting, fueling, and lubrication for those pieces of equipment appears to be lienable, so it's possible some leniency may be present when determining whether equipment repair is lienable. But, when that work wasn't even done at the project site, that'd seem less likely to result in lien rights since it'd be harder to tie that repair work to the particular project and property. With that being said, I'm not immersed in New York's case law on this particular aspect of mechanics lien law. So, it'd be wise to consult with a New York construction attorney on the matter. They'll be able to review that relevant case law as well as the specifics of your situation, then advise on how best to move forward.
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