Washington law is clear as to who may assert a private works lien claim, which is contained in RCW 60.04.021: “…any person furnishing labor, professional services, materials, or equipment for the improvement of real property shall have a lien upon the improvement for the contract price of labor, professional services, materials, or equipment furnished…
By Rebecca Bowers and Ted Levy The three most fundamental questions surrounding the mailing of a preliminary notice (ada Notice to Owner, Notice of Furnishing, Notice to Contractor, Right to Lien) are: A) Who must receive the notice? B) when must it be mailed? C) What are the required contents of the notice? For this…
Plaintiffs in this lawsuit filed by Levy – von Beck and Hagens Berman allege that developer Shea Homes intentionally omitted nearly all industry-standard methods for building homes to withstand our wet weather. And, even after its first homes suffered from various forms of water intrusion due to the substandard construction, Shea refused to tell its customers of the problems and continued building new homes with the same defects.
Attorney Katie Comstock has been named by Super Lawyers as one of the 2014 Top Attorneys and Rising Stars in Construction Litigation. Ms. Comstock was also featured in the July 2014 issue of the Seattle Met Magazine. This is Ms. Comstock’s second year in a row being recognized as a Rising Star. This distinction is…
A Recent Court Decision Clarifies How to Proceed Until recently, subcontractors, materialmen, and their legal representatives have lacked guidance when faced with the following question: How do I bring suit to enforce my construction lien when the general contractor has already obtained a bond to remove that lien from the owner’s property? Because a Washington…
On December 4, 2013, U.S. District Court Judge Ricardo Martinez issued a 17-page order denying defendant Shea Homes, Inc.’s motion to dismiss the class action lawsuit filed against the builder, Blough v. Shea Homes, Inc., (U.S. Dist. Court, Western District of Washington, cause number 2:12-cv-01493-RSM.) Here is a link to Judge Martinez’s Order Denying Shea…
Katie Comstock’s video presentation, “How to Protect Yourself From Bad Contractors” is now a featured answer among the “Top Legal Questions from Consumers Planning Home Improvement Projects,” on Avvo, Inc., the web’s largest expert-only legal Q&A forum.
If a supplier of materials, worker, or subcontractor is not paid, a lien may be filed against your property. If that happens, you could pay twice for the same work or, even worse, the lien could lead to a lawsuit seeking to foreclose your home. Thankfully, there are ways to protect yourself from having to pay twice.
A public works project is as exciting to win as it is disappointing to lose. But a win is not always a win, nor is a loss always a loss – if the results are subject to protest and appeal. Public works contract selection is governed by a bid procurement process, ostensibly “a fair forum…
