Construction
Construction compliance — start with the state you build in
Construction is the area where signature paperwork stops being paperwork: miss a notice deadline and you lose the right to get paid. The rules are state law, so the only honest way to write them is one state at a time.
Construction payment rights run on deadlines and required notices, and they are set by each state's lien statute. Florida is the state XOsign has published in depth, because it is where the product was built and used. The pages below cover the required contract disclosure, the four statutory lien waiver forms, and the Notice to Owner deadline. Other states are not yet published — and we would rather say so than guess.
Why this is state by state
Lien rights, notice deadlines, waiver forms and the consequences of missing a step are creatures of state statute. A 45-day rule in one state is a 20-day rule in another, and a waiver form that is mandatory in one state is unknown in the next.
That is why this section does not offer a national summary. A general answer about lien law is the kind of answer that costs someone a lien.
Other states
Only Florida is published today. More states will follow, in the order customers ask for them. Nothing on this site should be read as describing another state's lien law.
If you work outside Florida, the two questions worth asking a construction attorney in that state are: what notice do I have to serve, and by when, counted from what event.
What XOsign does about it
- Sends construction agreements, change orders and waivers for signature with a recorded trail of who signed what and when.
- Explains each clause in plain language, in the signer's language, so a crew signing a waiver knows what it gives up.
- Keeps the original and the executed version together, fingerprinted and timestamped.
- Does not calculate your deadlines for you and does not tell you which notice to serve. Those are legal judgments.
What to ask an attorney
- What notices must I serve on this project, and what event starts each clock?
- Which waiver form applies to this payment, and does signing it give up more than I intend?
- Does my contract include every disclosure my state requires for this type of work?
- What happens to my lien rights if the owner has already paid the general contractor?
Frequently asked questions
Do you cover states other than Florida?
Not yet. Only Florida is published, and we will not describe another state's lien law until it is researched and sourced.
Can lien waivers be signed electronically in Florida?
Florida has adopted the Uniform Electronic Transactions Act at §668.50, and the statutory waiver forms in ch. 713 are ordinarily signed like other documents. Whether a specific waiver on a specific project is properly executed is a question for your attorney.
XOsign is not a law firm and this page is not legal advice. It explains, in plain English, what the law generally requires so you can have a better conversation with your own attorney. Laws differ by state and change over time, and only a licensed attorney who knows your situation can tell you what to do about yours.
See a waiver explained before it is signed
Open the sample document and see what plain-language explanation looks like on a construction document.