DOT I’S AND CROSS T’S WHEN IT COMES TO CONSTRUCTION LICENSURE REQUIREMENTS

Posted on February 13, 2022February 13, 2022 by Edward Garber

It should serve as no surprise that making sure you are appropriately licensed is important. This includes complying with any state requirement that requires licensure, as well as complying with any local licensure requirement. Not doing so can result in the dispute centered on the lack of licensure, as opposed to leading facts relating to the substance of the dispute. In other words, you are dealing with a technicality that could have harsh implications. This lack of licensure issue recently played out in a dispute with a contractor and subcontractor in ABA Interior, Inc. v. The Owen Corp., 2022 WL 386103 (Fla. 4^th DCA 2022), dealing with a local licensure requirement.

In this case, a subcontractor was hired by the general contractor for a commercial project in Palm Beach County. The subcontract contained the standard provision that the subcontractor would comply with all federal, state, and local laws and ordinances.

Palm Beach County had a local ordinance that required the subcontractor to obtain a certificate of competency for specialty contracting (that included some of the work the subcontractor was hired to perform). Palm Beach County had a local ordinance that “makes it unlawful for a person who is required but failed to possess a certificate of competency ‘to hold himself/herself out as a contractor, whether as a plaintiff, defendant or witness in any court in this county.’” ABA Interior, supra, quoting Palm Beach County Code section 7-17(b)(2).

When the general contractor learned the subcontractor had not obtained its certificate of competency–which appeared to be learned after the subcontractor completed its performance–it stopped paying the subcontractor. The subcontractor sued the general contractor for payment in Broward County based on the subcontract’s venue provision. The general contractor counterclaimed to recover monies it paid the subcontractor (presumably under a disgorgement theory for unlicensed contracting) and further argued the subcontractor could NOT sue the general contractor relating to its unlicensed work.

The trial court agreed and entered summary judgment in favor of the general contractor. The Fourth District Court of Appeal reversed in part.

The subcontractor argued that because it sued in Broward County, not Palm Beach County, any bar to suing in Palm Beach County due to its lack of licensure did not apply. The appellate court shot this argument down as unreasonable:

[T]he [subcontractor’s] reading of the Palm Beach County Code would make it so that section 7-17(b)(2) could never be enforced outside of Palm Beach County, even when Palm Beach County law applies. If a contract has a venue provision outside of Palm Beach County, as is the case here, a party that falsely holds itself out as possession a required certificate of competency would effectively face no consequence. This would be an unreasonable result.

ABA Interiors, supra.

However, the appellate court maintained that the local ordinance only barred an unlicensed contractor “from litigating claims involving work that requires additional [specialty] licensure. [The subcontractor] was still permitted to prosecute or defend itself on claims that did not require this additional licensure.” Id. The subcontractor’s scope included flooring work which may not have required a specialty license. The appellate court found there was no finding by the trial court that all of the subcontractor’s work required a specialty license and there was also no finding as to whether the subcontractor complied with its contractual requirement “by engaging properly licensed sub-subcontractors to perform the work that required Palm Beach County licensure.” ABA Interiors, supra. For this reason, the appellate court reversed summary judgment.

Moreover, the appellate court maintained that there was no finding by the trial court as to whether the subcontractor’s lack of this specialty license “constituted a breach of the agreement that would negate any obligation for payment, even for the work that did not require such licensure.” Id. For this reason too, the appellate court reversed summary judgment.

As you can see, this case dealt with the technical argument of licensure. It did not deal with the substance of the subcontractor’s work (i.e., was it defective or nonconforming, or was the work performed correctly). This is not the type of fight you want to be in reinforcing the importance of making sure i’s are dotted and t’s are crossed with licensing requirements.

Please contact David Adelstein at dadelstein@gmail.com or (954) 361-4720 if you have questions or would like more information regarding this article. You can follow David Adelstein on Twitter @DavidAdelstein1.

RESIDENTIAL INTERIOR DECORATOR WAS ENTITLED TO LIEN AND WAS NOT ENGAGING IN UNLICENSED CONTRACTING

Posted on July 11, 2021July 11, 2021 by Edward Garber

Residential construction disputes can sometimes take nasty turns. This is not attributed to one specific reason, but a variety of factors. Sometimes, there are not sophisticated contracts (or contracts at all). Sometimes, relationships and roles get blurred. Sometimes, parties try to skirt licensure requirements. Sometimes, a party is just unreasonable as to their expectations. And, sometimes, a party tries to leverage a construction lien to get what they want. In all disputes, a party would certainly be best suited to work with construction counsel that has experience navigating construction disputes.

An example of a construction dispute that took a nasty turn involving an interior decorator is SG 2901, LLC v. Complimenti, Inc., 2021 WL 2672295 (Fla. 3d DCA 2021). In this case, a condominium unit owner wanted to renovate his apartment. He hired an interior decorator to assist. As his renovation plans became more expansive, the interior decorator told him he would need to hire a licensed contractor and architect. The interior decorator arranged a meeting with those professionals and, at that meeting, they were hired by the owner and told to deal directly with the interior decorator, almost in an owner’s representative capacity since the owner traveled a lot. The interior decorator e-mailed the owner about status and requested certain authorizations, as one would expect an owner’s representative to do. At the completion of the renovation job, the owner did not pay the interior decorator because he was unhappy with certain renovations. The interior decorator recorded a construction lien and sued the owner which included a lien foreclosure claim. There was no discussion of the contracts in this case because, presumably, contracts were based on proposals, were bare-boned, or were oral.

The owner argued that the interior decorator should not be entitled to any monies because she was illegally acting as a general contractor, i.e., engaging in unlicensed contracting. (The owner was arguing under Florida Statute s. 489.128 that states contracts entered into by unlicensed contractors are unenforceable as a matter of public policy.) But there were problems with this argument, as found by the Court. First, the evidence showed the owner did hire a general contractor who had met with the owner and was responsible for the work. Second, the evidence showed that any person who performed a service in connection with the project was approved by and hired by the owner or the general contractor. Third, the Court found the evidence showed the interior decorator’s scope was “specifically limited to providing design/decorating services and acting as the point of contact in a representative or agency capacity on [owner’s] behalf.” SG 2901, LLC, supra. In other words, the evidence showed the interior decorator did not do anything wrong but acted like many interior decorators on renovation jobs by providing a service and assisting the owner with licensed professionals an owner would need to engage.

The owner also argued that the interior decorator was not entitled to a construction lien. The trial Court disagreed because under Florida Statute s. 713.03(1), any person performing services as an interior designer are entitled to a lien for their services used in connection with improving the property or in supervising the work of improving the property. The Court importantly noted that because the interior design services were for a residential property, an interior decorating license was NOT required. See Florida Statute s. 481.229(6)(a) (discussing exemption for interior decorating for residential application).

The scenario discussed in this case is not an uncommon scenario on residential construction projects. Had contracts been formalized or included certain sophistication, perhaps this dispute could have been avoided. Possibly not. But importantly, despite the owner’s arguments to the contrary, the residential interior decorator did nothing improper. She wasn’t required to obtain a license for residential interior decorating. She was not acting as the general contractor. And, she was entitled to a construction lien for unpaid services.

INTERIOR DESIGNER LICENSURE

Posted on September 30, 2017September 30, 2017 by Edward Garber

An interior designer that provides residential interior design services does NOT need to be registered or licensed with the state. On this point, Florida Statute s. 481.229(6)(a) specifies:

(6) This part shall not apply to:

(a) A person who performs interior design services or interior decorator services for any residential application, provided that such person does not advertise as, or represent himself or herself as, an interior designer. For purposes of this paragraph, “residential applications” includes all types of residences, including, but not limited to, residence buildings, single-family homes, multifamily homes, townhouses, apartments, condominiums, and domestic outbuildings appurtenant to one-family or two-family residences. However, “residential applications” does not include common areas associated with instances of multiple-unit dwelling applications.

The italicized, bolded language above reflects that because a residential interior designer does not need to be registered or licensed with the state, they are not allowed to advertise as an interior designer. Well, this is a pretty big deal to residential interior designers. A federal court has stated that this is violative of the First Amendment. Based on this ruling, a residential interior designer may advertise himself/herself as an interior designer notwithstanding the language in the statute and this is how Florida’s Board of Architecture and Interior Design will enforce this statute. This is good news for a residential interior designer.

If an interior designer is providing nonresidential interior design services (such as in a commercial context or dealing with common areas in a building), they do need to be registered or licensed with the state. This doesn’t necessarily impact the advertisement aspect, but it does impact as to whether the interior designer is required to be registered or licensed in order to perform interior design services.

INTERESTED IN FLORIDA CONSTRUCTION CONTRACTING LICENSING???

Posted on May 17, 2016May 17, 2016 by Edward Garber

Interested in learning about Florida construction contracting licensing? Contrary to perhaps popular belief, Florida’s construction contracting licensing law is confusing…even for practitioners. Below is a portion of a presentation on the requirements for construction contracting licensure and the penalties for unlicensed contracting.

[gview file=”https://floridaconstru.wpengine.com/wp-content/uploads/2016/05/contractor-licensing-presentation.pdf”]

QUALIFYING AGENTS AND UNLICENSED CONTRACTING – MORE QUESTIONS THAN ANSWERS

Posted on February 7, 2016November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

Florida’s licensing requirements for contractors is a complicated statutory framework. This complication was exemplified in the First District Court of Appeal’s decision in Taylor Morrison Services, Inc. v. Ecos, 163 So.3d 1286 (Fla. 1^st DCA 2015), a case I believe leads to more questions than actual answers relating to the status of a contractor’s qualifying agent.

Homeowners entered into a contract with a homebuilder on February 13, 2004 for the construction of a home. The homebuilder submitted a building permit application (for purposes of obtaining a building permit). A qualifying agent of the homebuilder that previously resigned from the company prior to the date of the contract executed the application. This individual testified she had no involvement with the project, did not authorize the homebuilder to pull a permit for this project, did not supervise this project, and doubted the authenticity of her signature on the application. Notwithstanding, the homebuilder had another designated qualifying agent testify he was employed with the homebuilder during various capacities during the relevant contract period. However, he also did not appear to supervise the project.

After closing, the homeowners sued the homebuilder for negligence by an unlicensed contractor (per Florida Statute s. 768.0425) due to construction defects. The issue turned on whether the homebuilder was licensed at the time of contract. The trial court ruled the homebuilder was not licensed based on the fact that the person that pulled the building permit was no longer affiliated with the contractor at the time of contract and did not supervise the construction.

On appeal, the First District focused on the following applicable language in Florida’s contracting licensing law (embodied in Florida Statutes Chapter 489):

Florida Statute s. 489.128

(1) [C]ontracts entered into…by an unlicensed contractor shall be unenforceable in law or in equity by the unlicensed contractor

(1)(a) A business organization (e.g, company) is unlicensed if the business organization does not have a primary or secondary qualifying agent in accordance with this part concerning the scope of the work to be performed under the contract.

(1)(c) A contractor shall be considered unlicensed only if the contractor was unlicensed on the effective date of the original contract for the work, if stated therein, or, if not stated, the date the last party to the contract executed it, if stated therein. If the contract does not establish such a date, the contractor shall be considered unlicensed only if the contractor was unlicensed on the first date upon which the contractor provided labor, services, or materials under the contract

Florida Statute s. 489.105

(4) “Primary qualifying agent” means a person who possesses the requisite skill, knowledge, and experience, and has the responsibility, to supervise, direct, manage, and control the contracting activities of the business organization with which he or she is connected; who has the responsibility to supervise, direct, manage, and control construction activities on a job for which he or she has obtained the building permit; and whose technical and personal qualifications have been determined by investigation and examination as provided in this part, as attested by the department.

(5) “Secondary qualifying agent” means a person who possesses the requisite skill, knowledge, and experience, and has the responsibility to supervise, direct, manage, and control construction activities on a job for which he or she has obtained a permit, and whose technical and personal qualifications have been determined by investigation and examination as provided in this part, as attested by the department.

Based on this language, the homeowners argued that a business organization does not have a primary or secondary qualifying agent unless a licensed contractor (qualifying agent) obtained the building permit for a project and supervised that project. The First District disagreed and reversed the trial court explaining:

The requirement that a business organization have a qualifying agent “concerning the scope of the work to be performed under the contract” refers to the qualifying agent’s type of licensure, not to the agent’s actual performance with respect to a particular job or permit or even to an agent’s assignment to a particular contract. Section 489.128(1)(a)’s requirement that the business organization have a qualifying agent “concerning the scope of the work to be performed under the contract” means the business organization must have at its disposal a person who is recognized as a qualifying agent and licensed as an individual to perform the type of work addressed in the contract.

***

In consideration of the date requirement, the statutory definitions of “qualifying agent,” and the modifier “concerning the scope of the work to be performed under the contract,” we conclude that the licensure question under section 489.128(1) turns on whether the business organization is associated with a person licensed for the type of work to be performed under the contract as of the effective date of the contract, irrespective of whether that person ultimately obtains the permit and supervises the construction under the contract.

***

[A] person can be a qualifying agent in a general sense, even though the person has not obtained the permit for a particular job. In other words, chapter 489 recognizes “qualifying agent” as a position with respect to a business organization and not only as a position in relation to a specific project.

***

Although Appellant may have violated the law by building the home with a contractor other than the one whose name appears on the permit, by using Steiner’s license [person that resigned prior to contract] when she was not affiliated with the project, and by conducting the project with inadequate supervision, these transgressions did not retroactively render Appellant unlicensed within the meaning of section 489.128. Appellant’s apparent violations of the law occurred after the effective date of the contract. Thus, they are irrelevant to the narrow issue of whether Appellant was licensed on that date….

Taylor Morrison, supra, 1290-1292.

QUALIFYING AGENTS AND COMMON LAW NEGLIGENCE

Posted on September 19, 2015November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

Can a qualifying agent be sued for negligence? Yes, there is authority for arguments to pursue a qualifying agent under a common law theory of negligence.

A qualifying agent is not individually liable for breaching its statutory duties set forth in Florida Statutes Chapter 489— Chapter 489 governing qualifying agents for contractors does not create a private civil cause of action against qualifying agents. See Murthy v. Sinha Corp., 644 So.2d 983 (Fla. 1994). However, the Florida Supreme Court in Murthy held: “We agree that an owner may recover from a negligent qualifying agent, but only under a common law theory of negligence….” Id. at 986-87.

Further, in Cannon v. Fournier, 57 So.3d 875 (Fla. 2d DCA 2011), discussed here, the Second District Court of Appeal found that a qualifying agent of a general contractor could be liable in a personal injury action for control of the job site and supervision of matters relating to safety.

Finally, the recent decision in Taylor Morrison Services, Inc. v. Ecos, 163 So.3d 1286 (Fla. 2015), dealt with the discrete issue of whether the contractor was licensed as of the date of the contract. That was it. In dealing with this discrete issue, the First District noted:

Even though Guy [qualifying agent] was not listed on the permit as the contractor, he was responsible as the primary qualifying agent for all of Appellant’s [contractor] construction projects. Whether he carried out this responsibility faithfully is a separate question from whether he could be considered a qualifying agent that Appellant…, and one that the trial court did not need to decide.

Taylor Morrison Services, 163 So.3d at 1292, n.6 (noting that while contractor may have had qualifying agent as of the date of the contract to render it a licensed contractor under the law and the discrete issue before the court, this did not eliminate transgressions that may have occurred after the date of the contract). In other words, the Court noted that whether the qualifying agent carried out his responsibilities faithfully was a separate issue not before the court.

The bottom line is that a qualifying agent is not automatically immune from tort liability. There is authority to sustain arguments for a common law negligence claim against a qualifying agent for torts committed by the qualifying agent. But, simply violating certain statutory requirements set out in Chapter 489 should not create a private civil cause of action against a qualifying agent.

DESIGN-BUILD PROJECT DELIVERY IN FLORIDA (AND LICENSING EXEMPTIONS)

Posted on May 31, 2014November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

Under a design-build project delivery, typically the general contractor contracts with the owner to be responsible for both the design and construction of the project. This benefits the owner because if there is a design or construction issue–whether causing an increase in budget, a defect, or a delay–the owner can point to the contractor since it is the entity responsible for both disciplines. This benefits the contractor (in addition to the owner) because it is now working closely with the design professional so their interests are aligned and the contractor can have more control over value engineering or cost savings implementation and obtaining answers to requests for information or approvals to submittals and shop drawings. Since the contractor is fully accountable for both the design and construction, it is working closely and collaborating with the design professionals to improve the efficiency in the construction process. Furthermore, since the contractor is responsible for the design, it has more flexibility fast-tracking the construction in phases even though the complete design is not finalized. By fast-tracking the construction and overlapping the construction with the design, the contractor is ideally in a position to efficiently meet scheduling and production requirements.

A contractor is able to offer and perform design-build services because there is an exemption under the required licensing statutes for a contractor, architect, and engineer that allow these entities to negotiate / contract for design-build work as long as they are engaging a licensed professional to perform those tasks in which they are not licensed. For instance, a contractor is exempt from the requirement of being a licensed architect when contracting and offering design-build work as long as the contractor engages a licensed architect to perform the design. This is set forth in Florida Statute s. 481.229(3) that provides:

“Notwithstanding the provisions of this part, a general contractor who is certified or registered pursuant to the provisions of chapter 489 is not required to be licensed as an architect when negotiating or performing services under a design-build contract as long as the architectural services offered or rendered in connection with the contract are offered and rendered by an architect licensed in accordance with this chapter.”

Similarly, while less common, an architect or engineer is exempt from the requirement of being a licensed contractor when contracting and offering design-build work as long as these design professionals engage a licensed contractor to perform the construction. This is set forth in Florida Statute s. 489.103(16) that provides:

“An architect or landscape architect licensed pursuant to chapter 481 or an engineer licensed pursuant to chapter 471 who offers or renders design-build services which may require the services of a contractor certified or registered pursuant to the provisions of this chapter, as long as the contractor services to be performed under the terms of the design-build contract are offered and rendered by a certified or registered general contractor in accordance with this chapter.”

Despite these exemptions, recently the Florida Board of Architecture and Interior Design in Diaz & Russell Corp. v. Department of Business and Professional Regulation, 39 Fla. L. Weekly D 1125a (Fla. 3d DCA 2014), charged a general contractor for improperly performing services as an architect (when it was not a licensed architect) simply because the general contractor was offering design-build services. Basically, the Florida Board of Architecture maintained that the contractor needed to identify the designated architect in its proposal to the owner offering the architectural services. On appeal, the Third District Court of Florida correctly reversed this ruling because there is nothing that requires the contractor to identify the architect or engineer at the time of the proposal / contract just like there is nothing requiring the architect or engineer to identify the contractor at the time of the proposal / contract. The statutory exemption would simply require the contractor to engage a licensed architect to perform the design, which was not an issue in this case because the contractor properly hired an architect to prepare the design.

ENFORCEABILITY OF CONTRACT AS A WHOLE TO BE DETERMINED BY ARBITRATOR AND NOT A BASIS TO VACATE ARBITRATION AWARD

Posted on May 23, 2014November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

Arbitration is a form of dispute resolution that parties elect in their contracts. With respect to construction contracts, the arbitration provision may provide that the parties will submit their dispute to the American Arbitration Association. A benefit to arbitration is that the dispute will be decided by an arbitrator or panel of arbitrators that theoretically have expertise in the subject matter of the dispute. A downside is that there is no great avenue to appeal or vacate an arbitrator’s award (absent very limited circumstances) even if a party believes the arbitrator misapplied the law.

An example of this downside can be found in The Village of Dolphin Commerce Center, LLC v. Construction Service Solutions, LLC, 39 Fla. L. Weekly D1065a (Fla. 3d DCA 2014), where an owner hired a contractor to construct a warehouse. At the time of contract, the contractor was not licensed. The contractor became licensed after the execution of the contract. The contractor proceeded with construction and, due to a payment dispute, recorded a construction lien. The contractor also filed a demand for arbitration with the American Arbitration Association pursuant to its contract. The owner answered the demand for arbitration and asserted as a defense that the contract was unenforceable pursuant to Florida Statute s. 489.128 which provides, “As a matter of public policy, contracts entered into…by an unlicensed contractor shall be unenforceable in law or in equity by the unlicensed contractor.” Section 489.128 further provides that, “[i]f a contract is rendered unenforceable under this section, no lien or bond claim shall exist in favor of the unlicensed contractor….”

The owner further filed a lawsuit in circuit court asking the court to declare that that the contractor’s claim of lien was unenforceable since the contractor was unlicensed at the time of contract. The contractor asserted a counterclaim (although it is uncertain what claims were asserted) and moved to compel arbitration; the circuit court stayed the action and compelled the parties to arbitrate the dispute.

During arbitration, the owner never objected to the arbitrator’s jurisdiction to rule on whether the contractor’s lack of license at the time of contract prevented it from enforcing the contract and the construction lien. “The rules of the American Arbitration Association specifically state that any objection to the panel hearing an issue must be submitted with the answering statement or it is determined that the panel will have jurisdiction.” The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center, supra.

The contractor prevailed in the arbitration and moved to enforce the arbitration award in circuit court. The owner moved to vacate the award based on the unenforceability of the contract and lien under s. 489.128 (because the contractor was not properly licensed at the time of its contract with the owner). The trial court affirmed the arbitration award and the owner appealed.

The issue on appeal was whether the arbitrator had jurisdiction to determine the enforceability of the contract and the lien pursuant to s. 489.128. The Third District held that it did:

“[T]he issue of enforceability was submitted to the panel and neither party objected. As such, based on the AAA [American Arbitration Association] rules, the panel had jurisdiction to determine the issue. To ask the trial court to revisit the issue would require the trial court to step into an appellate position. The Florida Arbitration Statutes do not provide for such. Pursuant to section 682.13, Florida Statutes, the authority of the trial court to vacate an arbitration award is very narrow.”

The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center, supra.

The Third District, relying primarily on the United States Supreme Court’s decision in Buckeye Check Cashing, Inc. v. Cardegna, 126 S. Ct. 1204 (2006), as well as other Florida appellate decisions, maintained that when a party is challenging the legality / enforceability of a contract as a whole (versus only the arbitration provision), that determination MUST go to the arbitrator and not the court. For this reason, the Court held, “Those cases make clear that a trial or appellate court’s view that an arbitration panel wrongly decided the issue of illegality of a contract, and specifically illegality of a contract under section 489.128, is not a basis to vacate an arbitration award.” The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center, supra.

Now, there are interesting take-aways from this ruling that need to be considered:

- If a party is arguing that a contract that contains an arbitration provision is unenforceable as a whole (such as being unenforceable because the contractor was not licensed at the time of contract), that determination should go to the arbitrator and not the court. Yet, even the Third District noted that the Fourth District in Jupiter Medical Center, Inc. v. Visiting Nurse Association of Florida, Inc., 72 So.3d 184 (Fla. 4^th DCA 2011), entered a ruling that conflicted with the United States Supreme Court (and, thus, the instant ruling) by stating: “If [a] contract is found to be illegal, a prior arbitration will not prevent the trial court from vacating the award.” The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center, supra, quoting Jupiter Medical Center, Inc., 72 So.3d at 186. How should this be reconciled with the instant ruling? If a party in arbitration under the rules of the American Arbitration Association wants to preserve its argument that the arbitrator does not have jurisdiction to rule on the enforceability of the contract and lien under s. 489.128, it needs to (a) timely object to the arbitrator’s jurisdiction in accordance with the American Arbitration Association’s rules to ensure this argument is not waived and (b) hope that the court agrees with the Fourth District’s ruling in Jupiter Medical Center that a court can vacate an arbitration award if a contract is found to be illegal. More than likely, however, the court will do exactly what the Third District did in The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center by holding that the arbitrator has the authority to determine the enforceability of a contract when the legality of the contract is be challenged as whole.

- If a party wants to have the ability to appeal a ruling, particularly a ruling that involves a potentially incorrect application of the law, that party should NOT agree to a contract that contains an arbitration provision. There is no discussion in this case (and the appellate court likely did not know) why the arbitration panel overlooked the fact that the contractor was not properly licensed and/or the reasons it found that s. 489.128 did not apply. It did appear from the opinion, however, that the contractor was not properly licensed at the time of the contract and that s. 489.128 should have applied.

- Determine whether the party being hired is licensed at the time of contract. Also, if a party is required to be licensed at the time of contract, it should get licensed in order to avoid having the other party to the contract argue that the contract and/or lien is unenforceable.

- Recently, I discussed the Second District Court’s opinion in Snell v. Mott’s Contracting Services, Inc., 39 Fla. L. Weekly D1053a (Fla. 2d DCA), where the Court held that the contractor’s lien was unenforceable because the contractor did not timely enforce the lien in court after receiving a Notice of Contest of Lien. (See https://floridaconstru.wpengine.com/dont-forget-to-timely-foreclose-the-construciton-lien-in-court/). There is no discussion in The Village at Dolphin Commerce Center whether the contractor ever moved to foreclose its lien in court. Most likely, it asserted a lien foreclosure action in its counterclaim against the owner in court that was stayed pending the arbitration. However, if it did not, then there would remain an issue as to how the lien is enforceable if it was not timely foreclosed on in court.

MAKE SURE CONSTRUCTION LIENS ARE PROPERLY PREPARED AND DO NOT CONTAIN ERRORS

Posted on September 29, 2013November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

If a construction lien is improperly filed or contains errors, an owner will try to capitalize on the improper filing or errors in order to get the lien discharged from his property. This is what an owner should do, although he should not lose sight over the difference between a ministerial error in the lien that you do not bank your entire defense on versus a truly substantive error under Florida’s Lien Law that could give the owner leverage in the dispute (e.g., not recording the claim of lien within 90 days from final furnishing, a subcontractor/supplier not serving a notice to owner, a lien from an unlicensed contractor, or a lien that includes improper amounts for nonlienable items).

The recent case of Premier Finishes, Inc. v. Maggirias, 2013 WL 5338052 (Fla. 2d DCA 2013), illustrates an error in a lien (that appears ministerial at first glance) that resulted in the lien being discharged by the trial court. However, although not discussed in the opinion, this case addresses much more than an error in a lien, but an interesting licensing issue.

In this case, a contractor was engaged to build a house. The contractor entered into the contract under a fictitious name. However, from reviewing the case, it does not appear that the fictitious name was a registered fictitious name, nor does it appear that the fictitious name was registered as a licensed contractor. Rather, it was simply an acronym used by the licensed contractor.

A payment dispute arose when the owner terminated the contractor, and the contractor recorded a claim of lien and moved to foreclose the lien. However, the lien was recorded and lawsuit initiated by the contractor and not the fictitious name that entered into the contract. The owner argued that the contractor was not a proper lienor and therefore the lien should be discharged because it was not the entity that actually entered into the contract. The trial court agreed.

On appeal through a petition for a writ of certiorari, the Second District reversed for two main reasons.

First, the Court held that a contract entered into under a fictitious name is enforceable (even if that fictitious name is not properly registered). See Fla. Stat. 869.09(9). The Court explained: “[I]f Premier Finishes [contractor] was the real entity using the fictitious name when entering into the contract, it is the actual party to the contract or the contractor…and is entitled to proceed with a claim of lien against the Owner.” Premier Finishes, 2013 WL 5338052 at *3.

Second, under Florida’s Lien Law, a ministerial error does not invalidate a lien unless the owner can show he was prejudiced by the error. See Fla. Stat. 713.08(4). The owner will have to show how he was adversely affected / prejudiced by the error, which would require an evidentiary hearing and can be quite challenging to prove.

Now, what is interesting about this case is whether there was any argument that the lien should be unenforceable because the fictitious entity that signed the contract was an unlicensed contractor (assuming this is the case). Under Florida Statute s. 489.128, contracts entered into by an unlicensed contractor are unenforceable in law or in equity by the unlicensed contractor. Thus, an unlicensed contractor cannot properly lien. Instead of the focus being on the error in the lien due to the lien being recorded by the contractor instead of the fictitious entity, the argument could center on the fact that the contract was entered into by an unlicensed contractor and, therefore, the contract and corresponding lien are not enforceable. Perhaps, the owner plans on raising this argument to establish prejudice.

While the contractor can certainly raise arguments to address the fact that the fictitious name is properly licensed since the contractor that owns the fictitious name is properly licensed, a contractor that is required to be licensed by the state (e.g., general contractor, mechanical contractor, electrical contractor, plumbing contractor, etc.) is technically supposed to register and identify the fictitious name it is doing business under. See Fla. Stat. 489.119. Although, notably, there is an older case, Martin Daytona Corp. v. Strickland Const. Services, 881 So.2d 686 (Fla. 5th DCA 2004), that held that a subcontractor’s failure to obtain a license under its fictitious name did not render the contract unenforceable. However, this case was decided under a previous version of Florida Statute s. 489.128 and, importantly, the current version of this statute likely would not have applied to this case since the subcontractor (a mason) is not required to obtain a state license like a general contractor. It is uncertain how this case would be decided under current law.

The key is to double check your liens to ensure they are accurate and do not contain errors. Naturally, it is always a good thing to work with an attorney to prepare your lien so that if you know that if an error will likely exist you can game plan accordingly. For example, if you entered into contracts in the name of an unregistered fictitious name, the decision in Premier Finishes can support your argument that the fictitious name would not render the contract or lien unenforceable especially if the fictious name is used by a properly licensed contractor. Also, contractors needs to be sure they maintain proper licenses to remove any argument that the contract or lien is unenforceable. Keep in mind that under the law, a contract with an unlicensed contractor is unenforceable one-way by the unlicensed contractor; the other party to the contract can still seek recourse.

MORE ON THE HARSH REALITIES OF CONTRACTORS NOT BEING PROPERLY LICENSED

Posted on February 16, 2013November 8, 2024 by Edward Garber

Previously, we posted an article about the Florida’s court’s decision in Earth Trades, Inc. v. T&G Corp., 2013 WL 264440 (Fla. 2013), which demonstrates the huge risk an unlicensed contractor undertakes by entering into a contract based on Florida Statute s. 489.128 that would render contracts by the unlicensed contractor unenforceable in law or equity.

Well, unfortunately for the unlicensed contractor, there are more harsh realities further demonstrated by the Fourth District Court of Appeal’s ruling in Home Construction Management, LLC v. Comet, Inc., 2013 WL 440101 (Fla. 4th DCA 2013). This case references Florida Statute s. 768.0425 which provides in material part: “In any action against a contractor for injuries sustained resulting from the contractor’s negligence, malfeasance, or misfeasance, the consumer shall be entitled to three times the actual compensatory damages sustained in addition to costs and attorney’s fees if the contractor is neither certified as a contractor by the state nor licensed as a contractor pursuant to the laws of the municipality or county within which she or he is conducting business.”

In Home Construction Management, an owner hired an unlicensed contractor to complete the construction of a residence. Due to issues that are not discussed in the case, the owner sued the contractor for treble damages pursuant to s. 768.0425 and recovered a judgment against the unlicensed contractor (although the appellate court found that the representative of the unlicensed contractor–likely the person that signed the contract–was not a specific party to the contract and could not be liable for treble damages).

Besides the unlicensed contractor being unable to enforce its contract in any way, shape, or form in the event they are not paid, they could expose themselves to treble damages under s. 768.0425 (in addition to having to pay back all funds it received as an unlicensed contractor since a party cannot profit from an illegality). Statute 768.0425 is potentially extremely harsh because this statute would extend to contractors that do not necessarily need to be licensed by the state, but need to be licensed by a local jurisdiction in which they are performing work!!! Thus, ensuring proper licensure is important to any contractor performing work, regardless of whether that work requires a license by Florida’s Construction Industry Licensing Board.

Category Archives: Licensing