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In the Absence of Prejudice, a Notice of Lien May Be Amended to Correct a Misdescription of the True Property Owner

The Court of Appeals, in a full-fledged opinion by Judge Lippman, determined, in the absence of prejudice, a notice of mechanic’s lien can be amended nunc pro tunc to reflect the true owner of the property:

Here, the true owner is the sole shareholder of the listed owner, the conveyance of the property in question from the listed owner to the true owner was not at arm’s length, and the public and certainly the true owner here were on notice that a lien had been placed on the property. The subject notice of lien also provided means for third parties to contact the true owner. And, significantly, the true owner and listed owner consented to the underlying work that allegedly went uncompensated. Under the particular circumstances presented, the misnomer is a misdescription that does not constitute a jurisdictional defect and is curable by amendment. * * *

Article 2 of the Lien Law provides that it “is to be construed liberally to secure the beneficial interests and purposes thereof” (Lien Law § 23), which include “provid[ing] security for laborers and materialmen and . . . provid[ing] notice and a degree of certainty to subsequent purchasers” … . It states that “substantial compliance . . . shall be sufficient for the validity of a lien and to give jurisdiction to the courts to enforce the same” (Lien Law § 23) and “[a] failure to state the name of the true owner . . . or a misdescription of the true owner, shall not affect the validity of the lien” (Lien Law § 9 [7]). The Lien Law also authorizes amendment provided it does not “prejudice . . . an existing lienor, mortgagee or purchaser in good faith” (Lien Law § 12-a [2]). Thus, read together, it explicitly provides that it should be construed liberally, states that a misdescription of the true owner shall not invalidate a lien, and allows amendment where a third party would not be prejudiced. Matter of Rigano v Vibar Constr Inc, 2014 NY Slip Op 08762, CtApp 12-16-14

 

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