Grier Lumber Co., Inc. v. Tryon
| Decision Date | 25 March 1975 |
| Citation | 337 A.2d 323 |
| Parties | GRIER LUMBER COMPANY, INC., Plaintiff, v. David TRYON, t/a Ryon Services, Benjamin Hardesty and Carol Hardesty, Defendants. |
| Court | Delaware Superior Court |
Randy J. Holland, and Harold E. Dukes, Jr., of Dunlap & Holland, George town, for plaintiff.
Wilmer C. Bettinger, of Schmittinger & Rodriguez, Dover, for defendants.
Plaintiff supplied materials for construction of a garage at the residence of the individual defendants (defendants). The materials were purchased by defendant David Tryon (contractor) who constructed the garage pursuant to contract with defendants. Approximately two weeks before defendants made their final payment under the contract to contractor, plaintiff contacted defendants stating that contractor owed a bill for the materials and requesting that all further payments be made payable jointly to contractor and plaintiff. Defendants indicated that they would comply with this request. Thereafter, defendants discussed the matter with contractor and they were informed by the contractor that there was no money owned and that the contractor would take care of the dispute over the bill. After unsuccessfully seeking an indemnification agreement from the contractor, defendants paid the balance of the contract price to the contractor.
Defendants seek summary judgment on the basis of 25 Del.C. § 2707 which provides as follows:
' § 2707. Payment of contractor by owner of residence as a defense; certification of payment for labor and materials or release of liens by contractor.
No lien shall be obtained under this chapter upon the lands, structure, or both, of any owner which is used solely as a residence of said owner when the owner has made either full or final payment to the contractor, in good faith, with whom he contracted for the construction, erection, building, improvement, alteration or repair thereof. Prior to or simultaneous with the receipt of any full or final payment by the contractor, the contractor must provide the owner either (1) a notarized, verified written certification that the contractor has paid in full for all labor performed and materials furnished to the date of such full or final payment in or for such construction, erection, building, improvement alteration or repair or (2) a written release of mechanics' liens signed by all persons who would otherwise be entitled to avail themselves of the provisions of this chapter, containing a notarized, verified certification signed by the contractor that all of the persons signing the release constitute all of the persons who have furnished materials and performed labor in and for the construction, erection, building, improvement, alteration and repair to the date of the release and who would be entitled otherwise to file mechanics' liens claims. Failure of the contractor to provide the owner a written certification or a release of mechanics' liens at such time shall constitute sufficient cause for the immediate suspension, revocation or cancellation of the contractor's occupational and business licenses. If the owner has not made full payment in good faith to such contractor, the lien may be obtained in accordance with this chapter, but it shall be a lien only to the extent of the balance of the payment due such contractor, which balance or portion shall be payable pro rata among the claimants who perfect liens. Payments made to the contractor by the owner after service of process, as provided in § 2715 of this title, shall not be deemed to be 'in good faith.' (25 Del.C.1953, § 2707; 57 Del.Laws, c. 498; 58 Del.Laws, c. 274 § 1).'
The issue is whether under the facts stated above, the payment made by defendants to the contractor after defendants were informed by plaintiff of outstanding bills was a payment made in good faith, as contemplated by the statute. § 2707 was added to the mechanics' lien law by 57 Delaware Laws, Chapter 498, apparently to soften the harsh impact of the mechanics' lien law in the case of residential owners. The only attempt in the statute to define the phrase ...
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Masten Lumber and Supply Co., Inc. v. Brown
...law (in 1970) . . . to soften the harsh impact of the mechanics' lien law in the case of residential owners." Grier Lumber, Co. v. Tryon, Del.Super., 337 A.2d 323, 325 (1975). Therefore, in analyzing the questions presented, we must bear in mind that § 2707 seeks to eliminate the harsh resu......
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S. G. Williams of Dover, Inc. v. Diamond State Vinyl, Inc.
...of payment to the general contractor would lessen the likelihood of payment to the remote lien holder." Grier Lumber Company, Inc. v. Tryon, Del.Super., 337 A.2d 323, 326 (1975). Therefore, where the owner has been put on notice by the remote lien holder of the fact that his bill is unpaid,......
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Bedford v. Sussex Elec. Const. Co.
...release. That view of § 2707 is indeed a narrow one and contrary to the Superior Court decision announced in Grier Lumber Company, Inc. v. Tryon, Del.Super., 337 A.2d 323 (1975). In Grier, the Court noted that since § 2707 limits the right of a remote party (that is, one without a contractu......