This is not a substitute for legal advice.  An attorney must be consulted.

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A lien is a claim, interest, or right to property or a portion of it, of another person, arising by law or agreement for payment of a debt or liability. A mechanics� lien is a lien in real estate held by a person for labor, service, or materials furnished in connection with the construction or improvement of real estate. This type of lien is codified by the statute of the state which governs the creation, extent, filing, and foreclosure of the lien. The time limitations for filing of the lien and foreclosure of it are set by statute.

For most states, the lien must be verified or sworn under oath and must include the names and addresses of the lien claimant, the owner of the real estate and/or his/her agent, the street address and legal description of the real estate subject to the lien, the amount due or claimed, including an itemized list of labor or materials furnished, the nature of the work performed and when the work began and ended. The time of filing of the lien determines its priority with respect to other liens on the real estate.  Please see specific state for details and/or differences.

Black�s Law Dictionary Fifth Edition.

ALABAMA | ALASKA | ARIZONA | ARKANSAS | CALIFORNIA | COLORADO | CONNECTICUT | DELAWARE | FLORIDA 
 GEORGIA | HAWAII | IDAHO | ILLINOIS | INDIANA | IOWA | KANSAS | KENTUCKY | LOUISIANA | MAINE | MARYLAND 
 MASSACHUSETTS | MICHIGAN | MINNESOTA | MISSISSIPPI | MISSOURI | MONTANA | NEBRASKA | NEVADA 
 NEW HAMPSHIRE | NEW JERSEY | NEW MEXICO | NEW YORK | NORTH CAROLINA | NORTH DAKOTA | OHIO 
 OKLAHOMA | OREGON | PENNSYLVANIA | RHODE ISLAND | SOUTH CAROLINA | SOUTH DAKOTA | TENNESSEE 
 TEXAS | UTAH | VERMONT | VIRGINIA | WASHINGTON | WEST VIRGINIA | WISCONSIN | WYOMING

ALABAMA
Alabama Code 35-11-210 to 218.

ALASKA
Alaska Code 34.35.050 onward.

ARIZONA
Arizona Code 33-981 onward.

ARKANSAS
Arkansas Code 18-44-101 onward.

CALIFORNIA
California CC 3110 onward.

COLORADO
Colorado Code 38-22-101 through 133.

CONNECTICUT
Connecticut Code 49-33 onward.

DELAWARE
Delaware Code 25-2701 onward.

FLORIDA
Florida Code 713.01 onward.

GEORGIA
Georgia Code 44-14-360 onward.

HAWAII
Hawaii Chapter 507, Part II.

IDAHO
Idaho Code 45-501 onward.

ILLINOIS
Illinois Code 770-60/1 onward.

INDIANA
Indiana Code 32-8-3-1 onward.

IOWA
Iowa Chapter 572.

KANSAS
Kansas Code 58-201.

KENTUCKY
Kentucky Code 376.010 through .130.

LOUISIANA
Louisiana T.9, 4831.

MAINE
Maine T.10, 3251-3269.

MARYLAND
Maryland Real Prop. Art. 9-101 onward.

MASSACHUSETTS
Massachusetts C. 254, 1 onward.

MICHIGAN
Michigan CLA 570.1107 onward.

MINNESOTA
Minnesota Code 514.01 onward.

MISSISSIPPI
Mississippi Code 85-7-131 onward.

MISSOURI
Missouri Code 429.010 onward.

MONTANA
Montana Code 71-3-1202 onward.

NEBRASKA
Nebraska Code 52-125 through 159.

NEVADA
Nevada Code 108.222 through .239.

NEW HAMPSHIRE
New Hampshire C. 477, 1-14.

NEW JERSEY
New Jersey Code 2A-44A-1 through 38.

NEW MEXICO
New Mexico Code 48-2-2 onward.

NEW YORK
New York L.L. 2-79.

NORTH CAROLINA
North Carolina Code 44A-1 onward.

NORTH DAKOTA
North Dakota Code 35-27-01 onward.

OHIO
Ohio Code 1311.01 onward.

OKLAHOMA
Oklahoma Code 42-141 onward.

OREGON
Oregon Code 87.010 onward.

PENNSYLVANIA
Pennsylvania Code 49-1101 onward.

RHODE ISLAND
Rhode Island Code �34-28-1 onward.

SOUTH CAROLINA
South Carolina Code �29-5-10 onward.

SOUTH DAKOTA
South Dakota Code �44-11-1 onward.

TENNESSEE
Tennessee Code �66-11-101 onward.

TEXAS
Texas Prop. Code 53.021 onward.

UTAH
Utah Code 38-1-1 onward.

VERMONT
Vermont Code 9-1921.

VIRGINIA
Virginia Code 43-1 onward.

WASHINGTON
Washington Code 60.04.021-.201.

WEST VIRGINIA
West Virginia Code 38-2-1 onward.

WISCONSIN
Wisconsin Code 779.01 onward.

WYOMING
Wyoming Code 29-1-101 onward.