GC filed a lien AFTER he gave me an unconditional lien release

GC filed a lien AFTER he gave me an unconditional lien release

frisco, TX · Member since 2009 · 11 posts · 5 votes

Hello.  We have a Texas commercial contract where the GC made numerous breaches to his AIA contract.   The biggest breaches were going over budget and not giving us notice, and going over the date deadline by 75%!   However, we finished the project except for the punchout (with lots of construction defects), and we received our certificate of occupancy from the city.   Throughout the project, we kept asking for numerous things, including receipts, and lien waivers, all per contract stipulations.  It was like pulling teeth.  He actually gave us a notarized FINAL UNCONDITIONAL LIEN WAIVER even though we had a dispute on the final amount owed.  This waiver was sent to us via email (can be proven), so it is not the actual original copy.  He has since filed a lien on our project.  Any ideas on how to proceed?

Thanks in advance.

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Attorney and Real Estate Broker · Madison, WI · Member since 2016 · 265 posts · 100 votes
7y

Slander of title?

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  • Attorney and Real Estate Broker · Madison, WI · Member since 2016 · 265 posts · 100 votes
    7y

    Slander of title?

  • Attorney · Austin, TX · Member since 2014 · 888 posts · 759 votes
    7y

    @M P. "sent to us via email"....do you mean the GC emailed you a PDF waiver that was notarized?  As in, it was a scan?

  • frisco, TX · Member since 2009 · 11 posts · 5 votes
    7y

    Yes, the GC emailed us a scanned, signed, notarized unconditional lien release for final payment.  He then filed a lien.  

  • Ronald RohdePro Member
    Attorney · Dallas, TX · Member since 2016 · 5k+ posts · 2k+ votes
    7y
    Originally posted by @M P.:

    Yes, the GC emailed us a scanned, signed, notarized unconditional lien release for final payment.  He then filed a lien.  

     Hire a lawyer, is he claiming that the lien release was forged/inapplicable?

  • Attorney and Real Estate Broker · Madison, WI · Member since 2016 · 265 posts · 100 votes
    7y

    Also be careful to verify the date on the waiver vs date of last work, and the amount waived. Many waivers specify what is being waived and if the waiver only applies to part of the work the GC may be claiming it has rights to work performed after that date and/or for fees over and above the amount being waived.

    PS it may not even matter if the waiver is titled "unconditional" or "final" if it specifies elsewhere the work being waived and there is additional work the GC is claiming for.

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