Frederick A. Lurie

• Mechanics Lien Litigation Prosecution and Defense
• Commercial Lease Disputes

• Free Consultation

Illinois

Since 1982

Trial Bar, U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois

Since 1990

U.S. District Court Northern District of Illinois

Since 1982

Law Offices of Frederick A. Lurie

Current

DePaul College of Law

J.D.

1982

Lake Forest College

B.A. | Philosophy, Sociology & Anthropology

1978

ABA Forum on the Construction Industry

Member

Current

Construction Claims Network

Member

Current

Construction Law Group

Member

Current

Construction Lawyer Network

Member

Current

Construction Lawyers Only

Member

Current

J. Reuben Clark Law Society Construction Law Section

Member

Current

McGraw Hill Construction Events

Member

Current

American Bar Association

Member

Current

Illinois State Bar Association

Member

1988 - Current

Chicago Bar Association

Member

1982 - Current

Q. What is the best legal action to motivate a contractor to complete a project and what are our rights as homeowners?

April 14, 2023

A: Under Section 5 of the Mechanics Lien Act, the contractor is required to provide you with a sworn statement listing all the subcontractors, their trades and contract amounts before any money is due if you request the information. The statute provides:

"It shall be the duty of the contractor to give the owner, and the duty of the owner to require of the contractor, before the owner or his agent, architect, or superintendent shall pay or cause to be paid to the contractor or to his order any moneys or other consideration due or to become due to the contractor, or make or cause to be made to the contractor any advancement of any moneys or any other consideration, a statement in writing, under oath or verified by affidavit, of the names and addresses of all parties furnishing labor, services, material, fixtures, apparatus or machinery, forms or form work and of the amounts due or to become due to each."

Of course you have the disadvantage of having paid considerably more than the value of the work performed and so the contractor has more leverage. But the advice you received seems sound. Don't forget to request the subcontractor information in the same correspondence. ... Read More

Q. Construction relate

June 20, 2022

A: It sounds like your claim is against your sales rep.

Q. What Kind of Lawyer do I need?

May 16, 2022

A: You will likely need a code inspection to make sure the work was code compliant.

View More Answers ›