The first step in protecting your unpaid invoices is to determine whether the Property where you provided your labor, materials, or services is owned by a Public Entity or a privately held company or individual. The process that you will follow to enforce your claim is different depending upon the answer to this question.

You cannot record a Construction Lien against a Property owned by a Public Entity, like the Federal Government, the State, a county, a municipality, or a city. Some examples of government owned Properties include schools, libraries, highways, parks, and governmental buildings. As a substitute to a Lien, unpaid Subcontractors, Material Suppliers, Architects, Engineers, and Laborers have the right to assert a claim against the General Contractor’s Payment Bond. The process is referred to as making a “Payment Bond Claim.”

On all other Projects, those that are owned by private individuals or private business entities, you can file a Lien against the Property to secure payment of the debt. Some examples of privately owned Properties include private homes, apartment complexes, office buildings, shopping centers, restaurants and leased commercial properties. If the difference is still unclear, you can always and we will gladly provide you with more information.