In our companion post, we looked at the quirks that make Virginia’s mechanic’s lien law unique. A link to that post is here. Just across the Potomac, Maryland’s version of the same tool is built on a completely different foundation. If you build, renovate, or supply materials on a Maryland project — or own
Every state gives contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers some form of lien right when they aren’t paid for work that improves real property. But Virginia’s version of this tool stands out from most other states in several important ways. If you do construction work in the Commonwealth — or own property that’s being built or renovated
We previously reported on the dispute between AECOM and Exxon over work performed at Exxon’s refinery in Montana. AECOM claimed it was owed roughly $100 million for extra work performed during a plant turnaround in 2019 that lasted 17 weeks instead of seven weeks as planned. Exxon disputed that it owed additional money and counterclaimed
Bradley’s BuildSmart blog provided posts earlier this summer in June and July regarding some of the recently enacted laws from the 2025 Texas legislative session affecting the construction industry in Texas. This post describes two additional bills from the most recent Texas legislative session, one dealing with cybersecurity liability protections and one clarifying certain mechanics’
This is the first in a series of blog posts discussing lien requirements in states where we most frequently litigate and states with unique lien requirements. If you have any questions about filing liens, discharging or bonding off liens, or other lien requirements in these or other states, please do not hesitate to contact Aman
The corporate veil is a fundamental concept of American jurisprudence that generally shields owners and officers from the lability of the corporation. Unless the corporate veil is pierced or otherwise avoided, owners and officers are not individually liable for the debts of the corporation. Since this legal barrier was first invented, lawyers have been coming
A federal judge in New York served up a good reminder last week about the importance of dotting your i’s and crossing your t’s when it comes to perfecting a mechanic’s lien. The case involves a payment dispute between a subcontractor and general contractor on a police station renovation project in the Bronx.
The subcontractor
In an unpublished opinion, a California appeals court has upheld a subcontractor’s mechanics lien claim despite the subcontractor’s failure to strictly follow the procedural requirements set forth in the mechanics lien statute (see Ram Concrete v. Montecito, 2024 WL 1879352 (Cal. Ct. Appeal)). In Ram Concrete, the trial court entered judgment for the
Recently, the Oregon Court of Appeals reinstated a contractor’s mechanics lien claim notwithstanding the owner’s offer of payment because the offer was conditioned on the contractor signing a broad lien waiver that would have released other claims. See, Development Northwest, Inc. v. Zhiryada, 329 Or. App. 427 (December 6, 2023).
After completing its work, the
Another week, another fee-shifting case. This ones involves a 28-unit condo project in the Houston Heights neighborhood of Houston (see 2017 Yale Development, LLC v. Steadfast Funding, LLC, 2023 WL 3184028 (Tex. App. May 2, 2023)). The project failed after the developer defaulted on its loans and several contractors filed liens on the property.