ALEXANDER C. MACINTYRE, APPELLANT,
v.
MARCELO TORRES, APPELLEE
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In this second appeal, the court reversed a lien foreclosure judgment, holding that the subcontractor Torres failed to qualify for lien protection under the Crane doctrine because the owner MacIntyre made regular payments to the general contractor and properly contracted with a second contractor to complete abandoned work at reasonable cost-plus terms.
The court held that Torres failed to establish a valid lien claim because the evidence proved MacIntyre regularly paid Griggs and properly completed the abandoned work through Russo on cost-plus terms, leaving no unpaid fund to which Torres's claim could attach under the Crane doctrine.
[1] A subcontractor's failure to file a notice of intention to claim lien within forty-five days of commencing to furnish services or materials is not an absolute bar to the…
[2] A lienor may proceed with a claim of lien even if the notice of intention was not timely filed, provided the owner has not proceeded regularly in payments to the general…
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Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligence“the plaintiff has carried the burden of proving his claim of lien but that the defendant owner has failed to meet the burden in proving his defenses”
The trial court's holding that Torres proved his lien claim but MacIntyre failed to prove his defenses
Previewing 1 of 3 key quotes on this case — the court’s exact language, pinpointed for members.
Join FLexlaw to unlock all legal intelligenceMacIntyre contracted with general contractor Griggs for $129,000 to construct and remodel his home. Griggs hired subcontractor Torres to furnish mater…
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PEARSON, Judge.
This is the second appearance of this cause before the court; see Torres v. MacIntyre, 334 So. 2d 59 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976). The prior appeal was from a dismissal of the complaint with prejudice for failure of the subcontractor/lienor to file the notice of intention to claim lien within forty-five days of commencing to furnish the services or materials. We held that it was not an absolute bar to the lienor’s claim that he had failed to file the notice of intention to claim lien within forty-five days of commencing to furnish the services or materials. We further held that the lienor could proceed unless it was shown that the owner had proceeded regularly in payments to the general contractor and that no part of the agreed contract price was unpaid. Citing Crane Co. v. Fine, 221 So. 2d 145 (Fla.1969), and other cases following that decision. Upon return of the cause to the trial court, a trial was held and, at the conclusion thereof, a final judgment foreclosing the lien was entered. The court held that, “the plaintiff has carried the burden of proving his claim of lien but that the defendant owner has failed to meet the burden in proving his defenses.” This appeal is from that final judgment.
The defendant, MacIntyre, who is the appellant here, entered into a contract with Larry Griggs, Inc., for the construction and remodeling of defendant’s home. Griggs, in turn, hired the plaintiff, Marcelo Torres, a subcontractor, to furnish materials and labor in the construction on the home. The plaintiff-lienor failed to file a notice of intention to claim lien as provided by the statute. There is unpaid on his bill the amount of $2,889.55. Thereafter, the plaintiff filed his claim of lien.
On May 29, 1973, the defendant owner was notified that the general contractor, Griggs, had abandoned his work on the property. A notice of recommencement of operations was filed by the owner on September 19, 1973.1 The contract price between MacIntyre and the first contractor, Griggs, was for a price of $129,000. At the time of the abandonment of the contract, Griggs was paid for his services in the amount of $101,000. The record now before the court reveals that the owner paid a second contractor, James T. Russo, an additional $78,447.63 for Russo to complete the job abandoned by Griggs. The contract between MacIntyre and the second contractor, Russo, provided that Russo was “. . .to perform and complete all of the work required under the terms of the June 16, 1972, contract hereinabove referred to.” The June 16th contract was the contract with the first contractor, Griggs. The owner agreed to pay for the work on a cost-plus basis. The record is devoid of any showing that this was not a regular and proper way to complete the job. There is also no evidence in the record that the $101,000 paid to Griggs was improperly paid.
We hold that the evidence in the record of the payments under the original contract and the payments under the contract for completion adequately prove the defense that there is no fund under the holding in Crane Co. v. Fine, supra, to which the plaintiff-lienor’s claim can attach. Cf. Alton Towers, Inc. v. Coplan Pipe & Supply Co., 262 So. 2d 671 (Fla.1972); Carter Sand Company, Inc. v. Baymeadows, Inc., 320 So. 2d 14 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975).
The final judgment of foreclosure of lien is reversed upon the failure of the plaintiff, Marcelo Torres, to bring himself within the purview of the doctrine announced in Crane Co. v. Fine, 221 So. 2d 145 (Fla.1969); and Melnick v. Reynolds Metals Co., 230 So. 2d 490 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970).
Reversed.
. This notice of recommencement did not appear in the record of the first appeal and the opinion so noted. 334 So. 2d 60, footnote 2.
Cases With Similar Vibessemantic neighbors from the corpus
Citator
Cited By
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Brea v. MPS Indus., Inc., 372 So. 2d 212 (Fla. 3d DCA 1979)…ments before service of the “notice to owner” and the reasonable cost of completion. The owners urge error upon the striking of the defense and rely upon Alton Towers, Inc. v. Coplan Pipe & Supply Co., 262 So. 2d 671 (Fla.1972); MacIntyre v. Torres, 358 So. 2d 101 (Fla. 3d DCA 1978), and Bryan v. Owsley Lumber Company, 201 So. 2d 246 (Fla. 1st DCA 1967). A reading of these cases shows that the Alton Towers and Bryan cases involve proper payments only. The MacIntyre ease is not helpful because it shows no fac…
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McCURRY v. Eppolito, 506 So. 2d 1110 (Fla. 1st DCA 1987)…act price to defeat the claims of lien-ors arising from the original construction. See 2 Rakusin, Florida Mechanics’ Lien Manual, Ch. 14, p. 9 (1974); Tamarac Village, Inc. v. Bates & Daly Co., 348 So. 2d 23 (Fla. 4th DCA 1977); MacIntyre v. Torres, 358 So. 2d 101 (Fla. 3rd DCA 1978); and Melnick v. Reynolds Metals Co., 230 So. 2d 490 (Fla. 4th DCA 1970).2 When the original construction ceases before completion, whether by abandonment by the contractor or the owner’s termination of the contractor, the owner…1 / 2
Authorities Cited
- Crane Co. v. Fine, 221 So. 2d 145 (Fla. 1969)
- Alton Towers, Inc. v. Coplan Pipe & Supply Co., Inc., 262 So. 2d 671 (Fla. 1972)
- E. G. Layton Constr. Co. v. Kalin, 230 So. 2d 490 (Fla. 1st DCA 1970)
- Marcelo Torres v. MacINTYRE, 334 So. 2d 59 (Fla. 3d DCA 1976)
- Mills v. State, 320 So. 2d 14 (Fla. 4th DCA 1975)
- Carter Sand Co., Inc. v. Baymeadows, Inc., 320 So. 2d 14 (Fla. 1st DCA 1975)