Miami Construction Lien Lawyer

Miami construction disputes move fast. Your lien strategy should move faster.

Miami construction projects often involve fast-moving payment disputes, layered subcontracting, owner-contractor disagreements, permit issues, change order disputes, and competing claims for payment. When a contractor, subcontractor, supplier, or property owner faces a construction lien issue in Miami, the strategy must account for both Florida lien law and the practical realities of construction in Miami-Dade County.

A Miami construction lien lawyer can assist with serving or evaluating a Notice to Owner, preparing and recording a Claim of Lien, enforcing lien rights through foreclosure, defending against improper liens, transferring liens to bond, negotiating payment, and litigating disputed construction claims.

Lien rights in Miami are governed by Florida law, not local practice. The same strict statutory framework applies. Deadlines matter. Notices matter. Licensing matters. The lien amount must be supportable. A lien may be challenged through Construction Lien Defense, shortened deadlines, such as the 60-day enforcement period triggered by a Notice of Contest of Lien under section 713.22(2), Florida Statutes, lien transfer procedures, or claims that the lien is exaggerated, untimely, or otherwise defective.

Miami construction projects often require coordination across multiple languages, cultures, trades, subcontractors, suppliers, owners, design professionals, and inspectors. These disputes are rarely just paperwork problems. They usually involve jobsite realities, payment pressure, incomplete documentation, field changes, disputed scopes of work, and business decisions made under time pressure.

Armando Montesino understands those realities because his experience with construction did not begin in a courtroom. Before becoming a lawyer, he worked on construction sites beginning in his early teens, including assisting a tile installer, mixing thin-set, painting houses, and installing insulation. That practical background helps Montesino Law evaluate construction lien disputes with an understanding of how work is actually performed, documented, disputed, and paid for in the field.

Armando also worked on the defense side of the FIU bridge collapse litigation, giving him firsthand experience with complex, high-stakes construction disputes involving multiple parties, technical issues, and expert-driven claims. That experience informs the firm’s approach to construction lien claims, defect allegations, payment disputes, and contractor defense matters in Miami and throughout Florida.

Miami is one of the most litigious construction environments in Florida. Contractors and subcontractors can be pulled into disputes over issues far outside their scope of work, especially when a project involves multiple trades, unclear contracts, incomplete records, or efforts to spread responsibility after a problem arises. In one such case, Montesino Law represented a client accused of construction defects that had no connection to the client’s work and secured a voluntary dismissal after challenging the claims through a targeted motion for sanctions.

Many Miami construction lien disputes also involve Change Orders, Breach of Construction Contract, Unpermitted Construction Work, and Unlicensed Contracting, which is particularly prevalent in South Florida. Disputes may also involve defective work allegations or unpaid balances on private and public projects. On public projects, a lien is not available. The proper remedy is a payment bond claim, including claims under the Florida Little Miller Act, FDOT Bond Claims, or Federal Miller Act.

Poorly drafted contracts, missing lien documents, unclear change order procedures, weak recordkeeping, or missing protections can expose a contractor, subcontractor, supplier, or property owner to liability they never intended to assume. Montesino Law structures agreements, evaluates lien rights, enforces payment claims, defends against improper liens, and handles construction disputes with the realities of Miami construction in mind.

Montesino Law represents clients in Miami and throughout Florida in construction lien and payment disputes.