Legal Question in Construction Law in California

Re: mechanics lien and stop work lien

I have no idea what you mean by a "stop work lien". Before you pull off a project, you need to make sure that you comply with the terms of the contract governing disputes and give what notice is require.

As for your mechanic's lien, you can only file a lein for the value of the work in place. Intentionally overstating your lien claim can invalidate it.

Re: mechanics lien and stop work lien

Your lien is void. You cannot treat a mechanic's lien as a prejudgment attachment. Statute is very specific - only work, material, and labor actually supplied to job may be included.

No such thing as a stop work lien.

Re: mechanics lien and stop work lien

If I read your question properly, it seems that you are a sub-contractor who is due progress payments on this project, and one of them has been missed. So, you are continuing to work on the project, but have filed a mechanics lien in the interim.

CA Civil Code section 3116 requires you to COMPLETE the project before recording a lien. Any lien filed before you've completed the project is, therefore, invalid and should be removed to avoid having to pay attorneys fees for expungement.

That doesn't mean you can not take any action at all. You should read your contract with the general contractor to determine what dispute resolution process exists. If you're using the standard AIA A401, then there are explicit notice and dispute resolution procedures spelled-out.

You may also notify the owner and construction lender, if any, in writing of the general contractor's failure to pay you and request their inquiry into the matter. If you are not being paid sums that you are due, there could be financial fraud that will affect their interests, too.

I do not believe that a "stop work lien" is a creature recognized by the laws of this state. You might be referring to a Stop Notice, but that is something that you serve upon a construction lender to stop its payments to the owner/general contractor.

I recommend you consult with a local attorney before taking any other legal action.

Good luck.

Re: mechanics lien and stop work lien

No sooner do I type out my last answer when I stumble across case law interpreting the word "completion" in Civil Code section 3115.

Howard S. Wright Construction Co. v. BBIC Investors LLC (Cal. App. 2006) held that "completion" of work occurred when "all work under the contract has been performed, excused or otherwise discharged." In this case, the owner breached the contract early and the contractor filed the lien the next day. Even though the contracted work was not finished, the Court ruled that the contractors work was, nevertheless, "complete" because it was discharged by the owners breach as a matter of law.

The moral of the story is that if your contractor breached the payment terms of your subcontract, and if that was a material breach, it extinguishes your duty to perform and begins the period in which you must record your lien.

I cannot stress enough how important it will be for you to visit a local attorney to work these problems out.

Good luck.