Key Laws on Mechanics & Materialmen’s Liens
§42-141. Right to Lien-Priority-Enforceability against Property-Constructive Notice
Any person who shall, under oral or written contract with the owner of any tract or piece of land, perform labor, furnish material or lease or rent equipment used on said land for the erection, alteration or repair of any building, improvement or structure thereon or perform labor in putting up any fixtures, machinery in, or attachment to, any such building, structure or improvements; or who shall plant any tree, vines, plants or hedge in or upon such land; or who shall build, alter, repair or furnish labor, material or lease or rent equipment used on said land for buildings, altering, or repairing any fence or footwalk in or upon said land, or any sidewalk in any street abutting such land, shall have a lien upon the whole of said tract or piece of land, the buildings and appurtenances in an amount inclusive of all sums owed to the person at the time of the lien filing, including, without limitation, applicable profit and overhead costs. If the title to the land is not in the person with whom such contract was made, the lien shall be allowed on the buildings and improvements on such land separately from the real estate. Such liens shall be preferred to all other liens or encumbrances which may attach to or upon such land, buildings or improvements or either of them subsequent to the commencement of such building, the furnishing or putting up of such fixtures or machinery, the planting of such trees, vines, plants or hedges, the building of such fence, footwalk or sidewalks, or the making of any such repairs or improvements; and such lien shall follow said property and each and every part thereof, and be enforceable against the said property wherever the same may be found, and compliance with the provisions of this act shall constitute constructive notice of the claimant’s lien to all purchasers and encumbrancers of said property or any part thereof, subsequent to the date of the furnishing of the first item of material or the date of the performance of the first labor or the first use of the rental equipment on said land.§42- 142. Statement to be Filed
Any person claiming a lien as aforesaid shall file in the office of the county clerk of the county in which the land is situated a statement setting forth the amount claimed and the items thereof as nearly as practicable, the names of the owner, the contractor, the claimant, and a legal description of the property subject to the lien, verified by affidavit. Such statement shall be filed within four (4) months after the date upon which material or equipment used on said land was last furnished or labor last performed under contract as aforesaid; and if the claim be for the planting of any trees, vines, plants, or hedge, such statement shall be filed within four (4) months from such planting. Immediately upon the receipt of such statement the county clerk shall enter a record of the same against the tract index and in a book kept for that purpose, to be called the mechanics’ lien journal, which shall be ruled off into separate columns, with headings as follows: “When filed”, “Name of owner”, “Name of claimant”, “Amount claimed”, “Legal description of property”, and “Remarks”, and the clerk shall make the proper entry in each column.§42-142.4. Fraudulent Statement– Felony
Any original contractor who falsifies any statement regarding liens on labor or material to any owner of a dwelling, upon conviction, shall be guilty of a felony.§42-142.6. Pre-Lien Notice
A. For the purposes of this section: 1. “Claimant” means a person, other than an original contractor, that is entitled or may be entitled to a lien pursuant to Section 141 of this title; and 2. “Person” means any individual, corporation, partnership, unincorporated association, or other entity. B. 1. Prior to the filing of a lien statement pursuant to Section 143.1 of this title, but no later than seventy-five (75) days after the last date of supply of material, services, labor, or equipment in which the claimant is entitled or may be entitled to lien rights, the claimant shall send to the last-known address of the original contractor and an owner of the property a pre-lien notice pursuant to the provisions of this section. Provided further, no lien affecting property then occupied as a dwelling by an owner shall be valid unless the pre-lien notice provided in this section was sent within seventy-five (75) days of the last furnishing of materials, services, labor or equipment by the claimant. 2. The provisions of this section shall not be construed to require:a. a pre-lien notice with respect to any retainage held by agreement between an owner, contractor, or subcontractor, or
b. more than one pre-lien notice during the course of a construction project in which material, services, labor, or equipment is furnished. A pre-lien notice sent in compliance with this section for the supply of material, services, labor, or equipment that entitles or may entitle a claimant to lien rights shall protect the claimant’s lien rights for any subsequent supply of material, services, labor, or equipment furnished during the course of a construction project.
3. Except as otherwise required in paragraph 1 of this subsection, the pre-lien notice requirements shall not apply to a claimant:a. whose claim relates to the supply of material, services, labor, or equipment furnished in connection with a residential project. For the purposes of this subparagraph, the term “residential” shall mean a single family or multifamily project of four or fewer dwelling units, none of which are occupied by an owner, or
b. whose aggregate claim is less than Ten Thousand Dollars ($10,000.00).
4. The pre-lien notice shall be in writing and shall contain, but not be limited to, the following:a. a statement that the notice is a pre-lien notice,
b. the complete name, address, and telephone number of the claimant, or the claimant’s representative,
c. the date of supply of material, services, labor, or equipment,
d. a description of the material, services, labor, or equipment,
e. the name and last-known address of the person who requested that the claimant provide the material, services, labor, or equipment,
f. the address, legal description, or location of the property to which the material, services, labor, or equipment has been supplied,
g. a statement of the dollar amount of the material, services, labor, or equipment furnished or to be furnished, and
h. the signature of the claimant, or the claimant’s representative.
5. A rebuttable presumption of compliance with paragraph 1 of this subsection shall be created if the pre-lien notice is sent as follows:a. hand delivery supported by a delivery confirmation receipt,
b. automated transaction pursuant to Section 15-115 of Title 12A of the Oklahoma Statutes, or
c. certified mail, return receipt requested. Notice by certified mail, return receipt requested, shall be effective on the date mailed. 6. The claimant may request in writing, the request to be sent in the manner as provided in paragraph 5 of this subsection, that the original contractor provide to the claimant the name and last-known address of an owner of the property. Failure of the original contractor to provide the claimant with the information requested within five (5) days from the date of receipt of the request shall render the pre-lien notice requirement to the owner of the property unenforceable. C. At the time of the filing of the lien statement, the claimant shall furnish to the county clerk a notarized affidavit verifying compliance with the pre-lien notice requirements of this section. Any claimant who falsifies the affidavit shall be guilty of a misdemeanor, and upon conviction thereof may be punished by a fine of not more than Five Thousand Dollars ($5,000.00), or by imprisonment in the county jail for not more than thirty (30) days, or by both such fine and imprisonment. D. Failure of the claimant to comply with the pre-lien notice requirements of this section shall render that portion of the lien claim for which no notice was sent invalid and unenforceable.