Legal Question in Construction Law in Florida

Re: Payment for Commercial sub in FL

Flrodia Statute section 713.15 entitled "Repossession of materials not used" provides that "If for any reason the completion of an improvement is abandoned or though the improvement is completed, materials delivered are not used therefor, a person who has delivered materials for the improvement which have not been incorporated therein and for which he or she has not received payment may peaceably repossess and remove such materials or replevy the same and thereupon he or she shall have no lien on the real property or improvements and no right against any persons for the price thereof, but shall have the same rights in regard to the materials as if he or she had never parted with their possession. This right to repossess and remove or replevy the materials shall not be affected by their sale, encumbrance, attachment, or transfer from the site of improvement, except that if the materials have been so transferred, the right to repossess or replevy them shall not be effective as against a purchaser or encumbrancer thereof in good faith whose interest therein is acquired after such transfer from the site of the improvement or as against a creditor attaching after such transfer. The right of repossession and removal given by this section shall extend only to materials whose purchase price does not exceed the amount remaining due to the person repossessing but where materials have been partly paid for, the person delivering them may repossess them as allowed in this section on refunding the part of the purchase price which has been paid."

There is also another statute which may apply, but I am uncertain without doing additional research as to whether a NTO would be a pre-requisite to liening. Florida Statute 713.11. entitled "Liens for improving land in which the contracting party has no interest" provides that "When the person contracting for improving real property has no interest as owner in the land, no lien shall attach to the land, except as provided in s. 713.12, but if removal of such improvement from the land is practicable, the lien of a lienor shall attach to the improvement on which he or she has performed labor or services or for which he or she has furnished materials. The court, in the enforcement of such lien, may order such improvement to be separately sold and the purchaser may remove it within such reasonable time as the court may fix. The purchase price for such improvement shall be paid into court. The owner of the land upon which the improvement was made may demand that the land be restored substantially to its condition before the improvement was commenced, in which case the court shall order its restoration and the reasonable charge therefor shall be first paid out of such purchase price and the remainder shall be paid to lienors and other encumbrancers in accordance with their respective rights."

Good luck,

Randall Gilbert