Florida Construction lien law contains many notice and deadline requirements and failure to comply with the requirements of Florida Statute Sect. 713. Unfortunately, a common occurrence among contractors is the attempt to inflate a claim of lien amount due to various reasons, either an attempt to offset potential costs and fees that will be incurred in enforcing the lien or simply to intimidate the property owner to resolve the matter. Many times it is done as a result of the contractor anger in providing work and payment to subcontractors and then having the homeowner fail to make payments to the contractor.
The filing a fraudulent lien in Florida means that a contractor intentionally misstated certain information on the Claim of Lien that is untrue. This action on the part of the contractor can result in severe penalties. The contractor would likely be subject to the loss of his lien and the imposition of attorneys fees against the non-prevailing part. It is strongly recommend to be as accurate as possible when determining the amount of the lien and be certain to have the necessary documents to support the amount detailed in the claim of lien.
Ray Garcia, Esq.
Board Certified in Real Estate Law
By the Florida Bar
www.floridaconstructionlawgroup.com
