Fort Lauderdale Commercial Lien Lawyer

Florida’s Commercial Construction Lien Law: Chapter 713 Overview

Commercial construction jobs, like office buildouts, retail centers, mixed-use developments, warehouses, and industrial space, tend to involve more money, more subcontractors, and more moving parts than a typical residential project. That also means more ways for a lien dispute to go wrong. Florida’s construction lien statute, Chapter 713 of the Florida Statutes, applies the same strict, technical rules regardless of project size. The paperwork and the timing matter as much as who’s actually owed money.

Who Can File a Lien on a Commercial Project in Florida

Lien rights generally extend to everyone who improved the property, including:

• General contractors
• Subcontractors and sub-subcontractors
• Laborers
• Material suppliers (“materialmen”)
• Design professionals (architects, engineers, surveyors) under certain conditions

Who Doesn’t Have Lien Rights

• Unlicensed contractors, such as a contractor who was required to be licensed for the work performed, generally have no lien rights if unlicensed at the time
• Some suppliers who sold materials to another supplier, rather than directly to the job (in most circumstances)
• Anyone who didn’t serve a timely Notice to Owner when one was required

Florida Commercial Lien Deadlines You Can’t Afford to Miss

Notice to Owner — 45 Days

If you’re not in direct contract with the property owner or developer (a subcontractor or supplier on a commercial job, for example), Florida Statute §713.06 generally requires you to serve a Notice to Owner within 45 days of first furnishing labor or materials. On a large commercial project with dozens of subs, it’s easy for this to slip through the cracks. But miss the window, and you can lose your lien rights entirely, even if you were never paid.

Recording the Claim of Lien — 90 Days

Under §713.08, a Claim of Lien must be recorded no later than 90 days after you last furnished labor, services, or materials to the project. You generally must serve it on the owner within 15 days after recording.

Enforcing (Foreclosing) the Lien — 1 Year

A recorded lien doesn’t last forever. Under §713.22, a lien generally expires one year after it’s recorded unless you file a foreclosure lawsuit to enforce it. If the property owner records a Notice of Contest of Lien, that window can shrink to as little as 60 days.

How to File and Perfect a Lien on a Commercial Project in Broward County

• Confirm the Notice of Commencement for the project and identify the correct parties to notify. Commercial jobs often have more than one owner-side entity (developer, ground lessee, tenant improvement party) to track.
• Serve a Notice to Owner within 45 days of starting work, if your position requires it.
• Track your final furnishing date because this starts the 90-day clock for recording a Claim of Lien.
• Prepare and record the Claim of Lien with the Broward County Clerk of Courts, with an accurate legal description and amount owed.
• Serve the recorded lien on the property owner within the required window.
• File a foreclosure lawsuit within one year (or sooner, if a Notice of Contest is served) to enforce the lien.

Each step has a deadline, and on a commercial project with a general contractor and a long line of subcontractors and suppliers, the paper trail matters even more.

Enforcing a Lien: Foreclosure & Getting Paid

Recording a lien is only half the battle because you must enforce it to recover payment. Michael Garcia, P.A. handles lien foreclosure litigation from filing through trial, including:

• Foreclosure lawsuits to enforce unpaid liens
• Recovery of amounts owed, costs, and prejudgment interest
• Pursuing prevailing-party attorney’s fees under §713.29, where available
• Responding to a Notice of Contest of Lien before the shortened deadline runs

Public Commercial Projects: Payment Bond Claims When You Can’t File a Lien

Not every commercial project is privately owned. On projects for a county, municipality, school board, or other public entity, Florida law doesn’t allow a construction lien on the property at all because public property generally can’t be liened. Instead, your protection is a claim against the general contractor’s payment bond under Florida’s Little Miller Act, Fla. Stat. §255.05.

How a Public Project Bond Claim Works

• If you don’t have a direct contract with the general contractor, a Notice to Contractor generally must be served within 45 days of first furnishing labor or materials, mirroring the private-project deadline.
• A Notice of Non-Payment generally must be served within 90 days of your final furnishing of labor, services, or materials, and current law requires this notice to be sworn before a notary.
• A lawsuit to enforce the bond claim generally must be filed within one year of your final furnishing of labor or materials.

Payment bonds are typically required on public projects above a set dollar threshold, and the requirements can differ from private-project lien practice in a few important ways. Because we’ve represented public entities directly, including as outside counsel to the Broward Sheriff’s Office on a construction and procurement matter, we understand this process from both the contractor’s and the public owner’s side.

If You’re the Property Owner or Developer: How to Remove or Contest a Lien

A lien on your commercial property doesn’t mean the claim is valid, and Florida law gives owners and developers real ways to push back:

Lien Waivers, Releases & the Notice of Commencement on Commercial Projects

Before money changes hands on a commercial project, paperwork matters as much as payment. We help contractors, owners, developers, and lenders with:

• Partial and final lien waivers and releases under §713.20
• Reviewing a Notice of Commencement for accuracy before work begins
• Contractor’s Final Payment Affidavits
• Making sure a release doesn’t sign away more than intended, especially on a multi-draw commercial construction loan

When Lien Rights Are Gone: Other Ways to Get Paid

Missing a lien deadline doesn’t always mean the underlying debt disappears. Depending on the facts, we can pursue:

• Breach of contract claims
• Equitable lien theories
• Unjust enrichment
• Quantum meruit (payment for the reasonable value of work performed)