Mechanics liens are powerful tools to get construction industry participants paid – just just like any other powerful tool, they can be driveling. Whether the abuse is intentional, or a potential claimant just didn't meet the strict statutory requirements to claim a valid enforceable lien, property owners or other interested parties may need to take steps to accept an insufficient lien removed.

At that place are multiple options when a lien is filed against your holding. 3 of the virtually common are:

Improper-lien-filed-on-your-property--Heres-what-to-do

  • ane) immediately dispute the lien (whether through statutorily provided preliminary ways, a need to/against the claimant, or a full-blown lawsuit)
  • 2) force the claimant to file suit to enforce the lien in a shorter menstruation (if available in your state)
  • 3) merely await it out

For our purposes hither, we will use a hypothetical Pennsylvania-based construction project to briefly examine options bachelor when an insufficient lien is filed. While these potential steps are specific outlined by Pennsylvania law, another states have similar options to contest or remove invalid liens, and a review of the lien constabulary statutes in your state can provide some guidance.

How to Remove Mechanics Lien Chop-chop

Pennsylvania has many specific requirements that must be met in lodge for a claimed lien to be valid and enforceable. These requirements include: a debt of more than $500, notice requirements (for parties that did not contract directly with the property owner), timing requirements, and filing and service requirements (Pennsylvania has strict service requirements after the lien has been recorded). Failure to comply with any of the in a higher place requirements, including the $500 floor, can all be enough to return the lien invalid / unenforceable.

Contest the Claim by Filing "Preliminary Objections"

Pennsylvania mechanics lien constabulary (along with that of many other states) provides for a procedure for contesting a lien claim that does non comply with the mechanics lien human activity. In Pennsylvania, an owner is allowed to file "preliminary objections" to the lien claim with the court, and the court will make a determination. If at that place is a question of fact related to the determination of whether the lien is or is not valid, the court may take prove to assist in the determination (similar a degradation of interested parties or other evidence).

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A property possessor who has been made defendant in a procedurally or substantively defective lien can file these "preliminary objections" in an effort to have the invalid lien removed in a quick and relatively inexpensive manner. To best position themselves for the removal of the insufficient lien, the possessor should fix along all bases for belief that the lien is improper in the preliminary objections. The objections may be filed prior to the lien claimant initiating an enforcement action, and likely should be, to avoid the requirement to file a regular answer to the enforcement action.

This is an activeness in courtroom, and while an individual may correspond him/herself, information technology is rarely a adept idea, and it may be worth while to enlist the services of an chaser. Additionally, there are generally prohibitions about business entities representing themselves in court deportment.

Further Reading:

Frivolous Mechanics Liens: Intentionally Fraudulent vs. Honest Mistakes

How to Remove a Lien

Another Option, But Only on Some Residential Projects

In that location is potentially another option to take a lien removed quickly (that too requires a court action). Just, this choice is but available if the projection was on a single or double residential project, and the possessor has paid the GC the full contract amount. In such situations, liens are disallowed by law. If a lien is filed in that instance, the owner tin petition the courtroom for an firsthand discharge of the lien.

While these exact procedures are specific to Pennsylvania, there are many states with like options to get a fraudulent or facially bereft lien removed. Just because payment problems are common in construction, and liens are a powerful tool to combat those issues, doesn't meant that they are always appropriate, and sometimes, there must be a way to get them removed quickly.

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Download the Visual Guide to Preliminary Detect Requirements, an infographic that covers preliminary notice requirements and deadlines in all l states.

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