You received a Notice of Contest of Lien. The clock is already running. Under Florida Statute §713.22, you now have 60 days from the date that notice was served on you to file a lawsuit to enforce your lien. Miss that deadline by one day and your lien is automatically extinguished. No court order required. No exceptions. It is gone.
This article explains exactly what a Florida Notice of Contest of Lien does, what you must do within the 60-day window, the traps that kill otherwise valid liens, and what options remain if the deadline has already passed. The statute was most recently addressed by the Second District Court of Appeal in 2024, and this article reflects current Florida law.
What a Florida Notice of Contest of Lien Does
Under §713.22(1), a Florida construction lien is generally valid for one year from the date it was recorded. You have that full year to file a foreclosure lawsuit before the lien expires on its own.
A Notice of Contest of Lien compresses that window to 60 days. The property owner, or the owner’s attorney, records the notice with the county clerk. The clerk then serves a copy on you at the address listed in your recorded claim of lien. The 60-day clock starts the day after you are served. The day of service does not count. The last day does.
The statute is unambiguous: if you fail to file suit within 60 days of service, your lien is automatically extinguished. Florida courts have no discretion to extend that deadline. In Hernandez v. Burleigh House Condominium, Inc., decided by the Third District in 2025, the lienor received a Notice of Contest, failed to file within 60 days, and the lien was gone. No hearing required. No second chance.
This is not a deadline to manage. It is a deadline to treat like a fire.
| Sixty days is not much time when you factor in what has to happen before you file. Call Martin Law, PLLC the day you receive a Notice of Contest of Lien. |
What You Must Do Within 60 Days
Filing the foreclosure complaint is not the only thing that has to happen within 60 days. There are prerequisites. Miss any of them and you may lose the lien even if you filed the lawsuit on time.
File the foreclosure complaint.
A lien foreclosure action must be filed in the circuit court of the county where the property is located. The complaint must state the nature and amount of your claim and describe the property against which the lien is asserted. Filing in the wrong court or with an insufficient complaint does not preserve your rights. Get it right the first time.
Serve the contractor’s final affidavit before you file.
If you are a contractor in direct privity with the owner, Florida Statute §713.06(3)(d)(1) requires you to serve the owner with a contractor’s final affidavit before you can file a lien foreclosure action. That affidavit must list each lienor who has not been paid in full. Ordinarily it must be served at least five days before filing suit. When a Notice of Contest is in play, the affidavit must be served within the 60-day window, not after it expires.
In Pierson D. Construction, Inc. v. Yudell, the Fourth District addressed this directly: a contractor who filed the foreclosure complaint within 60 days but did not serve the final affidavit until after the deadline was barred from enforcing the lien. The complaint was timely. The affidavit was not. The lien was lost. Do not let the affidavit be an afterthought.
Record a notice of lis pendens.
When you file the foreclosure action, record a notice of lis pendens in the county official records. A lien that continues beyond the one-year period through commencement of an action is not enforceable against creditors or subsequent purchasers without notice unless a lis pendens is on file. It is a short document and it protects your position against anyone who might take an interest in the property while your lawsuit is pending.
Do not amend your claim of lien and think that buys time.
It does not. In Jack Stilson and Company v. Caloosa Bayview Corp., the Second District confirmed that filing an amended claim of lien does not toll the 60-day period. Once the Notice of Contest is served, both any amendment to the claim of lien and the foreclosure action itself must be completed within the same 60-day window. Amending your lien while the clock runs does not pause or extend the deadline.
The Bond Trap: When the Lien Has Been Transferred to Security
This is the most dangerous trap in the Notice of Contest process. Many contractors miss it entirely.
A property owner can release the real property from your lien by depositing cash or a surety bond with the clerk of court under §713.24. When that happens, your lien transfers from the real property to that deposited security. The property is clear but you still have a claim, just against the bond or cash deposit rather than the land.
Here is the trap: if the owner also records a Notice of Contest, you must name the surety as a defendant in your foreclosure action within 60 days. Filing suit against the property owner alone does not preserve your claim against the bond. In Jon M. Hall Company, LLC v. Canoe Creek Investments, LLC, decided by the Second District in 2024, the lienholder filed suit against the owner within the 60-day window but did not name the surety. The claim against the bond was extinguished.
When you receive a Notice of Contest, check immediately whether the lien has been transferred to a bond or other security. If it has, the surety must be a defendant in your complaint. There is no cure for missing that.
The Show Cause Summons: A Separate 20-Day Deadline
Apart from the Notice of Contest process under §713.22, any interested party can seek to discharge your lien under §713.21 by filing a complaint in circuit court. When that happens, the clerk issues a summons requiring you to show cause within 20 days after service why the lien should not be enforced or vacated.
Twenty days. When you receive that summons you must either show cause why the lien is valid or file a foreclosure action before the return date. The statute uses the word shall, meaning the court has no discretion. In Ruffolo v. Parish and Bowman, Inc., the First District required cancellation of a lien even though the contractor’s attorney appeared at the hearing and stated the contractor was prepared to immediately file suit. Prepared to file is not filed. The lien was cancelled.
If you receive a show cause summons, treat it exactly the same way you treat a Notice of Contest. Call a construction attorney the same day.
Payment Bond Notices of Contest
When a payment bond has been posted under §713.23, the contractor or the contractor’s attorney, rather than the clerk, may serve a Notice of Contest of Claim Against Payment Bond directly on the lienholder. The effect is the same: the 60-day deadline applies, and failure to file suit within that window automatically extinguishes the bond claim. The key difference is that the defendant in your action is the bond surety, not the property owner.
The general limitations period for payment bond claims is one year after performance of labor or completion of delivery of materials. The Notice of Contest compresses that to 60 days from service. Same deadline, different target.
If You Missed the Deadline: What Survives
Your lien is gone. That part is final. But the lien is a security device, not the only remedy available to you. Florida Statute §713.30 preserves your underlying contract and equitable claims even after the lien is extinguished.
In Hernandez v. Burleigh House Condominium, Inc., the Third District reversed the dismissal of an unjust enrichment claim after the lien was extinguished for failure to file within 60 days. The court held that lien extinguishment does not bar pursuit of other actions at law, including unjust enrichment and breach of contract. Earlier decisions have reached the same conclusion.
If you missed the Notice of Contest deadline, you likely still have contract and equitable claims. They are harder to collect on without a lien but they are not gone. Talk to a construction attorney about what is still available before you walk away from money you earned.
Frequently Asked Questions
How long do I have to respond to a Notice of Contest of Lien in Florida?
You have 60 days from the date the notice is served on you. The day of service does not count. The last day does. If you do not file a lawsuit to enforce your lien within that window, the lien is automatically extinguished with no court order required and no exceptions.
Does the 60-day clock start when the Notice of Contest is recorded or when I receive it?
It starts when you are served, not when the notice is recorded. The clerk records the notice and then serves a copy on you at the address in your recorded claim of lien. The 60-day period begins the day after service. This distinction matters. Do not count from the recording date.
What happens if I file the foreclosure lawsuit but forget to serve the contractor’s final affidavit in time?
Your lien can still be lost. If you are a contractor in privity with the owner, the final affidavit required by §713.06(3)(d)(1) must be served within the 60-day window, not after it expires. In Pierson D. Construction v. Yudell, the contractor filed the complaint on time but served the affidavit late. The lien was barred. Filing the lawsuit is not enough on its own.
What if the owner transferred my lien to a bond? Do I still have to file within 60 days?
Yes, and you must name the surety as a defendant. When a lien is transferred to a bond or cash deposit under §713.24, the 60-day window still applies if a Notice of Contest is served. Filing suit against the property owner alone does not preserve your claim against the bond. The surety must be named in your complaint within 60 days.
What if I already missed the 60-day deadline?
Your lien is extinguished. But you may still have contract and unjust enrichment claims under §713.30. Lien extinguishment does not automatically kill your underlying right to be paid. It eliminates the lien as a security device, not every avenue for recovery. Talk to a construction attorney about what claims survive and how strong your position is without the lien.
Can the owner use a Notice of Contest to get rid of a valid lien?
The Notice of Contest does not challenge the validity of your lien. It shortens your time to enforce it. A lienor with a perfectly valid lien loses it just as absolutely as one with a defective lien if the 60-day deadline passes without a filed lawsuit. The notice is a procedural device, not a defense on the merits. That said, filing suit to beat the deadline on a lien that is defective or overstated carries its own risk. Under §713.29, attorney’s fees go to the prevailing party in a lien enforcement action. A contractor who files and loses pays the other side’s fees. If your lien has problems, talk to a construction attorney before you file, not after.
What is a show cause summons and how is it different from a Notice of Contest?
A show cause summons under §713.21 is a separate process where any interested party files a complaint in circuit court seeking to discharge your lien. The clerk then issues a summons requiring you to respond within 20 days. The deadline is 20 days, not 60, and it is equally automatic. Miss it and the lien is cancelled. A Notice of Contest under §713.22 is recorded and served by the clerk directly. Both are emergencies. Both require the same immediate response.
Key Takeaways
| Key Takeaways 60 days from service. Not from recording. The day of service does not count. The last day does. Miss it by one day and your lien is gone with no court order and no exceptions. Filing the lawsuit is not enough on its own. Contractors in privity must also serve the final affidavit within the 60-day window. A late affidavit costs you the lien even if the complaint was timely. If your lien was transferred to a bond, name the surety as a defendant. Suing the owner alone does not preserve your claim against the bond. Do not amend your lien and think it buys time. Amending the claim of lien does not toll the 60-day period. A show cause summons under §713.21 gives you only 20 days. Treat it exactly like a Notice of Contest. Payment bond notices of contest work the same way. 60 days from service. The defendant is the surety, not the owner. Missing the deadline does not kill every remedy. Contract and unjust enrichment claims survive under §713.30. The lien is gone but you may still have a case. Call a construction attorney the day you receive a Notice of Contest. Not the next day. That day. |
| Sixty Days Is Not Much Time. A Notice of Contest of Lien is one of the fastest ways to lose money you are legally owed. The deadline is automatic, the consequences are permanent, and the traps along the way, including the final affidavit, the surety defendant, and the lis pendens, are easy to miss if you are not paying attention. Do not try to navigate this one alone. Contact Martin Law, PLLC. Florida construction law for contractors and subcontractors who need answers, not hedged opinions. |
About the Author
John C. Martin, Esq. is a Florida construction law attorney and the founder of Martin Law, PLLC. He represents contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers throughout the state of Florida.
Disclaimer
This article is for general informational purposes only and does not constitute legal advice. Reading this content does not create an attorney-client relationship. Always consult a qualified Florida construction law attorney regarding your specific situation.