In Ontario, a construction lien is valid for a period of 90 days from the date that it is registered on the property. During this 90-day period, the lienholder can take legal action to enforce the lien and recover the amount owed for their work or materials.
How does a Mechanic's Lien work? Provide a pre-lien notice. A pre-lien notice informs the hiring party (and any other relevant parties) of your involvement in a specific project. Provide notice of intent to lien. Create and file the lien. Notify and serve the property owner. Release the lien or seek legal action.
Preserving the Lien—Claim for Lien In order to be preserved in time, a lien claimant must, with certain exceptions, register a claim for lien over title to the property. The registration must take place before the expiry of the 45-day period described.
You should be able to dispute any lien that he does try to register against it to your property. You can also threaten to sue him if he does not complete the work and if he refuses to take part in the arbitration set out in the dispute resolution section of you contract.
In order to be preserved in time, a lien claimant must, with certain exceptions, register a claim for lien over title to the property. The registration must take place before the expiry of the 45-day period described. For almost 15 years, Ontario has operated under a primarily electronic land registration system.
Under the Ontario Construction Lien Act a lien must be registered at the Land Titles Office within 60 days from the date the work is completed or the materials supplied to the project job site.