Think You Have The Right To Contest A Mechanic's Lien Claim? Think Again.
Here's something you're sure to be interested in. We had previously discussed an order in Vancil v. Tres Amigos (C.D.IL, Doc. No. 06-71254) regarding Tres Amigos attempt at attaining summary judgment to extinguish two mechanic's liens filed by former subcontractors of Vancil in a bankruptcy proceeding initiated by Vancil. That entry is here.
Today, the court denied Tres Amigo's motion for reconsideration. Of note to everyone working in the industry and dealing with mechanic's liens, this order, holds that section §60/9 of the mechanic's lien act, which allows the parties to an Illinois mechanic's lien foreclosure to contest each other's rights without the need for multiple pleadings between all of the parties, is a procedural statute and not a substantive right given to the parties. Because the federal court is not bound by state procedure, but rather, by state substantive law, in order to maintain an action against the other lien claimants, a party must file pleadings against the other parties in order to contest the issues between them. Given this assessment of the nature of the rights granted under §60/9 the court denied Tres Amigo's motion for reconsideration and held, again, that it needed to have pleadings on file against the lien claimants it was contesting, or no remedy was available from the federal court.
