We provide information about the law design to help people cope with their needs; however this is not legal advice. Although we go to great lengths to make sure our information is accurate and useful, we recommend you consult an attorney if you want professional assurances that our information and your interpretation of it is appropriate to your situation.

“Lien claimant” means any person who provides work, material or equipment with a value of $500 or more to be used in or for the construction, alteration or repair of any improvement, property or work of improvement. The term includes, without limitation, every artisan, builder, contractor, laborer, lessor or renter of equipment, materialman, miner, subcontractor or other person who provides work, material or equipment, and any person who performs services as an architect, engineer, land surveyor or geologist, in relation to the improvement, property or work of improvement, Such parties are entitled to assert a Notice of Lien upon the property and buildings.Further, NRS 108.222 provides that if a contractor or professional is required to be licensed pursuant to the provisions of NRS to perform his work, the contractor or professional will only have a lien (as described in subsection 1.) if he is licensed to perform his work.

Subcontractors and lower-tiered subcontractors who wish to preserve their lien rights under NRS 108.221 to 108.246 must deliver to the owner a Notice of Right to Lien, in the form set forth in statute. This can be done at anytime, but is only effective for work or services performed or materials or equipment furnished 31 days before the date the Notice of Right to Lien is given. Prime contractors, or other persons contracting directly with the owner, and those providing labor only are exempt from this requirement.

In order to claim a Notice of Lien upon the real property, the lien must be recorded with the county recorder of the county I which the property is located. The lien must be recorded within 90 days after the date on which the latest of the following occurs 1) the completion of the work of improvement; 2) the last delivery of materials or the furnishing of equipment by the lien claimant; 3) the last performance of work by the lien claimant. The 90 day period is shortened to 40 days if a valid Notice of Completion is recorded. A copy of the lien must be served upon the owner of the property, by personal service, or other mandated procedure, within 30 days of recording. Where a work of improvement involves a multi-family or single family residence, including apartment buildings, the lien claimant, except for laborers, must serve a 15-day Notice of Intent to Lien before recording a Notice of Lien, either by personal service or by certified mail. Service of this residential notice extends the time for recording the Notice of Lien by 15 days.

A lawsuit to foreclose the lien must be filed within six (6) months of the recording of the lien.

The Notice of Lien must be served upon the property owner within 30 days of recording. Upon the institution of a foreclosure procedure, the lien claimant must file a Notice of Foreclosure the Action in a newspaper published in the county, at least once a week for three consecutive weeks. The Notice of Foreclosure must also be mailed to any other known lien claimant via registered or certified mail, or by personal service.

Yes, in general, lessees who cause a work of improvement to be constructed must provide security in the form of either a construction disbursement account or a surety bond, and record and serve a Notice of Posted Security with the county recorder.

Other than the requirement to provide a Notice of Right to Lien and Notice of Intent to Lien (Residential), there are no special requirements for lower tier subcontractors and suppliers.

The statute does not specifically detail what constitutes the “last delivery of material or furnishing of equipment” or the “last performance of work”. However, the statute allows a lien to be recorded “within 90 days after the date on which the latest of the following occurs”. So, the lien claimant will have 90 days form the last day it performed work on the project, the last day it supplied material or equipment or the completion of the project, whichever is the latest to occur. The 90 day period may be shortened to 40 days if a Notice of Completion is recorded. Generally, but no always, “completion of the project” will occur last. The statute defines completion of a work of improvement as i) the occupation or use by the owner, an agent of the owner or a representative of the owner of the work of improvement, accompanied by the cessation of all work on the work of improvement; ii) the acceptance by the owner, an agent of the owner or a representative of the owner of the work of improvement accompanied by the cessation of all work on the work of improvement; or iii) the cessation of all work on a work of improvement for 30 consecutive days, provided a Notice of Completion is timely recorded and served and the work is not resumed under the same contract.

The state allows the recording and service of a surety Bond form or prospective and existing lien rights bond form in the amount of one and one half (1 1/2) times the amount of the lien in order to remove the lien from the real property. The recent changes to the lien law no longer require a court order to release the lien. Generally, the recording and service of the bond pursuant to NRS 108.2415 is sufficient to release the property from the lien and replace the property with the surety bond as security for the lien. Nevada also has a procedure for the summary removal of a frivolous lien made without reasonable cause.

The law specifically prohibits the recover of consequential damages in a lien claim. Further, fixtures, which are not affixed, used, consumed, or incorporated in the improvement of the property, are not recoverable in a lien claim.