Legal Question in Construction Law in Illinois

I had a contract with a paving company to do an addition to my driveway. The contract date was 5-17-2011 until 6-17-2011. The company was suppose to complete the work with in this time frame. They came out and completed the Work on 7-1-2011. I already put down $500 and owe them an additional $700 for the work preformed however their work was sub par and actually caused more damage to my home and driveway. Can they put a lien on my home, send me to the collections office or take me to court for this? The contract also says that if we have to go to court I would be responsible for the fees. Is this true even if the work is horrible? They also verbally told me that they would rip out my sidewalk then didn't add it to the contract so the sidewalk wasn't ripped out. I don't know what to do.


Asked on 10/25/11, 7:23 am

1 Answer from Attorneys
Stephen Messutta

Yes they can lien your home if you do not pay and do not provide them with reasoning. You wind up with only a defense in a later mechanic's lien foreclosure action, and in the interim your credit rating could be affected if a lawsuit is filed, or sooner if a lien is recorded and the credit reporting agencies pick it up. What you should do is have an attorney write them a letter outlining the sub-par work and demanding it be brought up to a reasonable standard, or you might consider having another contractor fix it and charge them for the work, and that if they try to lien your home you will consider legal action to defeat it, etc. etc. Telling them now of the problems and maybe even giving them a chance to make good within a reasonable period of time may avert a lien, maybe not; it depends on how reputable they are. Forget about the "verbal side agreement". And forget about the contract time frame; you accepted late performance, although you did not agree to "sub-par" performance.

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Answered on 10/25/11, 12:03 pm


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