Mechanic's lien
A mechanic's lien secures payment for labour, skill or materials furnished to improve real property. In Minnesota it runs under chapter 514, and the deadlines are strict enough that they defeat more claims than the merits do.
Who can claim#
Broader than people expect. Minn. Stat. 514.01 extends lien rights to contractors, subcontractors, material suppliers, equipment lessors, architects, engineers and surveyors — provided the applicable notice and filing requirements are met.
Public property cannot be liened. Property owned by the state or a Minnesota municipality is outside chapter 514.
The 120 days#
The central deadline, and the one that catches people.
A lien statement must be recorded and served on the owner within 120 days after the claimant last furnished labour, skill or materials. Recording is with the county recorder, or the registrar of titles for Torrens property. Service is personal or by certified mail.
Two refinements matter.
It runs from the claimant's own last day, not from overall project completion. A subcontractor who finished sixty days before the project ended has a deadline sixty days earlier than the general contractor's.
Nominal work does not extend it. Minnesota courts disregard items of labour or material that are insignificant and furnished solely to extend the filing window — though genuine minor repair work can count.
The Minnesota Supreme Court confirmed in Eclipse Architectural Group v. Lam that failure to comply means the lien ceases to exist. Not becomes harder to enforce. Ceases.
The pre-lien notice#
A separate and earlier requirement.
Subcontractors and suppliers who do not contract directly with the owner must serve a written pre-lien notice within 45 days of first furnishing, under Minn. Stat. 514.011 subd. 2, alerting the owner that unpaid lower-tier parties may claim a lien.
Missing this generally defeats the lien before the 120-day question is ever reached.
Enforcement within one year#
A lien that is filed and not enforced becomes unenforceable. Under Minn. Stat. 514.12, enforcement must be commenced within one year of the last furnishing.
An expired unenforced lien still sits on the record and still needs clearing, which is a nuisance for the owner and provides nothing to the claimant.
For owners#
Two protections worth knowing.
An owner is generally not required to pay their contractor until 120 days after completion of the improvement, except to the extent the contractor furnishes lien waivers from parties who gave pre-lien notice.
And within 15 days after completion, an owner may require any lien claimant, in writing, to furnish an itemised and verified account of the claim.
Both exist so that an owner who has paid their contractor is not exposed to claims from parties the contractor failed to pay.