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Her Preliminary Lien Notice Was Refused

The California Civil Code protects against refused certified mailings

QUESTION:

I sent 20 day preliminary notices for a job we are doing and one of the certified prelim envelopes came back as refused. Do I still have prelim rights?

Anita, GMC Electric

Preliminary Lien Notices / Pre-Liens

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ANSWER: Yes, if the owner refuses to accept the certified mail envelope, service is still complete.

Here's what Civil Code section 8116 provides. Note that (b) states that service "is complete and deemed to have been given" at the time of deposit in the mail of the certified mail.

8116.  

Notice under this part is complete and deemed to have been given at the following times:

(a) If given by personal delivery, when delivered.

(b) If given by mail, when deposited in the mail or with an express service carrier in the manner provided in Section 1013 of the Code of Civil Procedure.

(c) If given by leaving the notice and mailing a copy in the manner provided in Section 415.20 of the Code of Civil Procedure for service of summons in a civil action, five days after mailing.

(d) If given by posting, when displayed.

(e) If given by recording, when recorded in the office of the county recorder.

It's important to keep the returned envelope (preferably unopened, but if the returned envelope is opened, it's probably not a problem) to be able to show that the preliminary notice WAS sent by certified mail to the owner at the owner's address, but the owner simply refused to accept the certified mail.

--
Thank you to Dave Barnier for the above information. :) Mr. Barnier is a practicing litigation attorney in San Diego CA and can be reached at 619.682.4842.

The information in this article is based upon California law current at the time of writing and is provided for general information, only. The information provided illustrates laws and legal principals in general. Any information or analysis presented in this article is intended solely to educate the reader on general issues. A comprehensive review of facts, documents, and applicable laws is always required before any attorney can competently provide any legal advice regarding any particular situation. In short: Please do not rely on any part of this article when analyzing any specific situation affecting you or your business.

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