If
the property is owned by more than one person, the Notice
To Owner need only be served on any one owner and does not
have to be served on all owners. The Notice of Commencement
for the project may specify persons other than the owner
upon whom the Notice To Owner must be served. The failure
to serve the Notice To Owner on those persons specified
in the Notice of Commencement other than the owner, however,
will not invalidate an otherwise valid lien. As a general
rule, a lienor must serve a copy of the Notice To Owner
upon all parties in the chain of contracts above the lienor
with whom the lienor does not have a direct contract. For
example, a subcontractor or material supplier to a contractor
must serve its Notice To Owner on the owner and any others
specified for receipt of notices in the Notice of Commencement,
a sub-subcontractor, or a material supplier to a subcontractor
must serve its Notice To Owner on the owner, the contractor,
and any others specified for receipt of notices in the Notice
of Commencement. A material supplier to a sub-subcontractor
must serve its Notice To Owner on the owner, the contractor,
the subcontractor, and any others specified for receipt
of notices in the Notice of Commencement.
To
be effective, the Notice To Owner must be served in one
of the methods specified in Florida Statutes section
713.18. The allowed methods of service are:
1.
Actual delivery,
a.
to the person to be served if the person is an individual,
or
b. to one of the general partners if the entity is a general
or limited partnership or joint venture, or
c. to any officer, managing agent, or business agent,
if the entity is a corporation.
2.
Mailing, postage prepaid, by registered or certified mail,
or as of July 1, 2001, by overnight or second day delivery,
to the last known address of the person or entity to be
served, provided there is evidence of delivery. Evidence
of delivery includes a certified or registered postal receipt
showing delivery, or, if the Notice To Owner was mailed
to the last address shown in the Notice of Commencement
or any amendment thereto, or in the absence of a Notice
of Commencement, to the last address shown in the building
permit application, or to the person or entity’s last
known address actual receipt is not required if the United
States Postal Service places on the envelope the legends
"refused," "moved, not forwardable,"
"unclaimed" or words of similar effect.
In
the event that the foregoing methods of serving the Notice
To Owner can not be accomplished after the lienor
has attempted such efforts in good faith and diligently,
the Notice To Owner can be posted on the property. Florida
Statutes section 713.01(25) specifies that posting requires
that the document be placed "on the site of the improvement
in a conspicuous place at the front of the site and in a
manner that protects the document from the weather."
This requirement for sufficiency of posting is the same
as for the building permit; therefore, a Notice To Owner
that is served by this method is commonly posted in the
same location as the permit placard. If posting of the Notice
To Owner is used as the means of service, it is a prudent
practice to photograph the posted notice for proof of the
location where it was posted and to establish compliance
with the statutory requirements.
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