Legal Question in Business Law in New York

VFW Post needs legal advice
Hi,

I'm the Senior Vice Commander of a VFW Post on Long Island, and recently we re-furbished our bathrooms. We hired a contractor to do the job, and he intern sub contracted a company to install individualized stalls in the bathrooms. The renovations were finished, and we paid our contractor in full. After we paid our bill the contractor we hired went out of business and never paid the sub contractor for the partitions he installed in our bathrooms. The partition installer has already put a lien on our property, and is now threatening to come into our post and remove the bathroom partitions. Is there some way we can protect our selves from the partition installer? We were thinking of a Restraining Order. Does Restraining Orders cover things like this, and how do we go about getting a Restraining Order?

Thanks

Asked on 5/18/07, 1:03 pm

2 Answers from Attorneys

Kristen Browde Browde Law, P.C.

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Re: VFW Post needs legal advice

Hi there, and thanks for your service to the country.

There is a defense to the lien - if you paid the contractor in full, and can establish this, the lien must be removed. And the subcontractor may not engage in self-help remedies such as attempting to remove the lien.

You should write the guy a letter, enclosing a copy of your contract with the GC and a copy of the check by which he was paid, and demand that he remove the lien. Your letter should also warn him against engaging in inappropriate actions and "put him on notice" (those words) that any attempt by him to enter your premises will result in him being arrested for trespass.

Your letter should end with these words: "This letter is not an election of remedies. The (VFW Post) specifically reserves all rights and remedies available at law or in equity."

Best of luck!

Answered on 5/18/07, 1:30 pm

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