- April 17, 2017
- Posted by: admin
- Category: Blog, Contractor Legal Information, Florida Contractor License
The following article was written by Miami Construction Lawyer Alex Barthet and appeared first on TheLienZone. It was re-posted with permission. For more information about Alex and his firm, please visit www.TheLienZone.com and www.Barthet.com.
See below for some great information we found legal fees. Do not ever hesitate to call us here at Licenses, Etc.! If we don’t have the information, we can find it for you!
Florida’s construction lien statute says the prevailing party in any action to enforce a lien is entitled to recover a reasonable fee for the services of his or her attorney.
So what happens if a lien dispute between a contractor and his homeowner clients is resolved in the contractor‘s favor but through an arbitration proceeding versus a court of law? Would the contractor still be entitled to recover his attorney’s fees as the prevailing party?
He surely thought so, but to his surprise a court didn’t see it his way. The lien statute requires that lien enforcement actions be brought in a court of competent jurisdiction, and the ordinary meaning of “court” does not include an arbitration proceeding.
This contractor was out of luck because:
1. the construction lien statute must be strictly construed,
2. he didn’t seek to enforce his lien in court, and
3. the arbitration agreement didn’t call for the award of attorney’s fees.
He prevailed in his dispute but he wouldn’t be entitled to recover his attorney’s fees.
At Licenses, Etc., we offer a fast contractor license application process for our contractor clients. Contact us about getting your Florida contractor’s license by clicking here or calling 239-777-1028.
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