Old Adobe Office Properties, Ltd. v. Gin

In Old Adobe Office Properties, Ltd. v. Gin, 151 Ariz. 248, 727 P.2d 26 (App. 1986), the Laborer recorded a notice and claim of lien and served it on the owner along with a foreclosure complaint one week before expiration of the lien's six-month validity period. Id. at 249-50, 727 P.2d at 27-28. The court considered whether the Laborer's conduct constituted service "within a reasonable time after the recording of the lien," or at least created a fact question for a jury. Id. at 252, 727 P.2d at 30. The court noted that what is "reasonable" depends on the circumstances of the particular case but then held the Laborer's service in that case was not reasonable as a matter of law. Id. The court explained: A.R.S. 33-998 provides that a lien recorded under the provisions of Article 6 "shall not continue for a longer period than six months after it is recorded, unless action is brought within such period to enforce the lien." Since the purpose of the notice requirement is to allow an owner an opportunity to protect himself and to investigate the claim, absent unusual circumstances, the notice requirement of 33-993(A) will not be met merely by appending a copy of the notice and claim of lien to the complaint filed in an action to foreclose that very lien. Id.