Clackamas County is enacting what many are hailing as a progressive step in switching to a four-day work week, effective Nov. 3, 2008. County buildings will be closed Fridays, which is expected to result in energy cost savings. But the change may negatively affect landscapers and others who work on construction projects. As business law attorney Hafez Daraee wrote in a Jordan Schrader Ramis P.C. Dirt Alert™, the Clackamas County Recorder’s Office will no longer be open Fridays to accept construction liens. In Oregon, liens must be filed within 75 days of substantial completion or last day on the job – and if that 75th day falls on a Friday, better go Thursday (it closes at 5:30 p.m.). Or better yet, don’t procrastinate at all. “To avoid losing your rights,” Daraee stated, “do not wait until the last possible opportunity to file a construction lien – you may end up being a day late. Consult with an attorney as soon as concerns about payment arise.” Good advice, particularly in this time of failing homebuilders.
