Posts Tagged ‘Andrea Goldman’

Around the Web in Construction Law – May 21, 2010

On May 22, 2010        
  • 29 States Add Construction Jobs Between March and April:    The Associated General Contractors of America released its report on the rise/fall of construction jobs around the country for the most recently reported month, and there is a mixture of good news and bad news (depending on where you are).   29 states splits the country directly in half, with some folks having a good month and some folks not.   The New Orleans City Business Blog chimed in to pass along word that Louisiana lost jobs during the period. Washington and Oregon gained jobs in the period, barely.   .01% and .02% respectively.
  • I subscribed to a new blog this week, Government Contracts Legal Forum, recently launched by Crowell Moring and focusing on….government contracting law.   Involved with this blog is our friend in green building law, Chris Cheatham, who works at Crowell Moring and will be posting on the new blog from time to time.   Chris runs the Green Building Law Update blog.   One of his firsts posts on the new blog points out an Obama Executive Order that will require more green building projects.
  • New Lead Based Paint, Renovation, Repair and Painting Rule is causing contractors to panic, as per Andrea Goldman’s Massachusetts Builders Law Blog.   Andrea has posted a great deal about the new RRP rules, and if you deal with lead-based paint in any way or you renovate homes or buildings with lead-based paint, you will want to pay attention to these important changes from the EPA.
  • Louisiana Construction Law Blog on Blogspot discusses “Initial Decision Makers” in construction projects.   While IDMs have been around for a while, there really became popular when the AIA incorporated the concept into its contract documents a few years ago.    This post from our friends up in Shreveport, Louisiana, offers a great primer on the concept.

Interested in more articles and blog posts around the web on construction law?   You can check out other articles I’ve shared over the past week on my Google Reader Shared Items Feed.

Posted in:     Around The Web  /  Tags: , , , , , , , , ,   /   Leave a comment

An Owner's Perspective on Liens

On January 3, 2009        

We frequently post about construction liens from a contractor’s perspective – who are clearly interested in figuring out ways to qualify for the filing of a lien.

What we rarely comment upon is an owner’s perspective, who are concerned with the opposite:  figuring out ways to condemn a lien as improperly filed.

It’s important for those who usually file mechanic’s liens to step back and consider the opposing viewpoint.   There is some value in understanding that upon receipt of a lien, an owner’s will likely have the instinct of wanting to fight it as improper or unfair.

When lien laws are drafted, they are drafted with protection for property owners in mind.  And when contractor boards and other regulatory agencies commit time to lien laws, they are usually focusing on educating the public (i.e. property owners) on what they can do to prevent liens.

A December 2008 article from the Daily Journal of Commerce in Portland, Oregon, stands as an example of this.  In the article titled “Five Questions to Ask About Liens,” the author goes through five questions owners should ask when faced with mechanic’s liens to determine their rights on proceeding forward.

This is not a rare example.   To the contrary, regulatory agencies across the nation who regulate contractors focus a great deal of effort on helping owners understand and overcome improperly filed construction liens.  See the page for Department of Labor & Industries in Washington, or the Contractors State Licensing Board in California.

If your company does wind up filing an improper mechanic’s lien and its disputed by the property owner, a loss in court could require your company to pay penalties, attorneys fees and more.

The point?   It’s important to understand the lien laws in your jurisdiction, and avoid making common errors and mistakes.

Andrea Goldman, a construction attorney in Massachusetts, publishes a great blog about this very issue titled:  Home Contractor v. Homeowner.  She frequently posts on issues that surface in home construction between the property owner and contract that results in litigation or arbitration.

With all of the work across the nation from regulatory agencies attempting to stifle improperly filed mechanics liens, Andrea notes in her blog that mechanic’s liens are so powerful of a collection tool for contractors that even an improperly filed lien can yield non-payment.

In her post the “Strength of Mechanic’s Liens,” Andrea states as follows:

Even if the lien is not done properly, one still has to file an action in court to dissolve it, which requires paying legal fees that are frequently not recoverable.

And regardless of your position on the subject (as a property owner, contractor or regulatory board), and regardless of how right or wrong your position may be, Andrea’s point is clear.   Mechanic’s liens are powerful instruments, and even when they are filed with technical defects, they cause parties to consider the debtor’s claim and contemplate a resolution.

Posted in:     Uncategorized  /  Tags: , , , , , , , , , , ,   /   Leave a comment