Fullerton Beck partner Katrine Beck and special counsel, Joseph Sauer, prevailed in a motion to discharge a mechanics lien in the New York State Supreme Court in Putnam County. The firm’s client, an individual homeowner, hired a general contractor to build a new house in Putnam County. The work of the GC and his subcontractors was egregiously poor – so poor that they were building the house facing the wrong direction – that the firm’s client refused to pay them. One of the sub-contractors placed a mechanics lien of $46,000 on the house, which prohibited the owner from obtaining additional financing to finish building his home.
After some investigation, Fullerton Beck discovered that the subcontractor never registered to work in Putnam County, making any contract entered into or lien filed unenforceable. Katrine and Joe filed a motion to discharge the lien on these grounds, and the court agreed. The lien was discharged and canceled permitting the client to proceed with his project.
The attorneys at Fullerton Beck strive to minimize their clients’ legal spend. Winning cases on motion early on saves clients the time and money of litigating a case. In this matter, it also saved the integrity of our client’s property title.