Packer v. Cline II

Packer v. Cline II

IN THE UTAH COURT OF APPEALS
 

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Edson F. Packer, as Trustee for the Edson F. Packer Trust; and Sharon B. Packer, as Trustee for the Sharon B. Packer Trust; and Edson F. Packer and Sharon B. Packer,

Plaintiffs and Appellees,

v.

Earl L. Cline II,

Defendant and Appellant.

MEMORANDUM DECISION
(Not For Official Publication)
 

Case No. 20030468-CA
 

F I L E D
(September 10, 2004)
 

2004 UT App 311

 

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Fourth District, Heber Department

The Honorable Donald J. Eyre Jr.

Attorneys: Earl L. Cline II, Salt Lake City, Appellant Pro Se

Shawn D. Turner, South Jordan, for Appellees

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Before Judges Billings, Bench, and Jackson.

BILLINGS, Presiding Judge:

    Earl Cline appeals the trial court's Order and Final Judgment asserting that the trial court erred by ruling that the purported mechanics' lien he filed on the Packers' residence was a wrongful lien pursuant to Utah Code section 38-9-1(6) and by awarding damages and attorney fees to the Packers under Utah Code section 38-9-4. See Utah Code Ann. §§ 38-9-1(6), -4 (2002). We affirm.

    Cline filed a document with the Wasatch County Recorder that purported to be a mechanics' lien in the amount of $70,000 for a mural the Packers' daughter (Cline's ex-wife) painted inside the Packers' residence. The trial court found that Cline had failed to establish what work, if any, he performed on the mural, the value of that purported service, how he derived a value for his service, and when the work was allegedly performed. The court also found that Cline failed to produce any documentary evidence supporting his claim for the lien amount of $70,000. Thus, the trial court held that the purported mechanics' lien filed was invalid on its face because it failed to set forth the requisite statutory elements, including notice of the steps the Packers could take to have the lien removed. See Utah Code Ann. § 38-1-7 (2002).

    We agree. While "Utah courts have recognized that substantial compliance with these provisions is all that is required" to acquire a mechanics' lien, Projects Unlimited, Inc. v. Copper State Thrift & Loan Co., 798 P.2d 738, 743 (Utah 1990), Cline's lien lacks substantial compliance because it fails to address several requisite provisions within the mechanics' lien statute. See Utah Code Ann. § 38-1-7(2). In particular, Cline's lien fails to set forth "the time when the first and last labor or service was performed or the first and last equipment or material was furnished," id. § 38-1-7(2)(c), and "what steps an owner . . . may take to require a lien claimant to remove the lien." Id. § 38-1-7(2)(h). Furthermore, because Cline did not establish that he provided any work or provided any materials or equipment used on the mural, he is not entitled to file a mechanics' lien under Utah Code section 38-1-3. See Utah Code Ann. § 38-1-3 (2002). Therefore, we hold that the trial court properly determined that Cline's lien was not a mechanics' lien.

    In addition, the trial court ruled that Cline had filed a wrongful lien under Utah Code section 38-9-1(6) and awarded damages and attorney fees under section 38-9-4(3). See Utah Code Ann. §§ 38-9-1(6), -4(3) (2002). A wrongful lien is defined as

any document that purports to create a lien or encumbrance on an owner's interest in certain real property and at the time it is recorded or filed is not:

(a) expressly authorized by this chapter or another state or federal statute;

(b) authorized by or contained in an order or judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction in the state; or

(c) signed by or authorized pursuant to a document signed by the owner of the real property.

Id. § 38-9-1(6). Further, section 38-9-4(3) provides that

[a] person is liable to the record owner of real property for $3,000 or for treble actual damages, whichever is greater, and for reasonable attorney fees and costs, who records or files or causes to be recorded or filed a wrongful lien as defined in Section 38-9-1 in the office of the county recorder against the real property, knowing or having reason to know that the document:

(a) is a wrongful lien;

(b) is groundless; or

(c) contains a material misstatement or false claim.

Id. § 38-9-4(3). Thus, the trial court properly held that Cline's purported mechanics' lien was a wrongful lien under section 38-9-1(6) because it was not authorized by statute, by order or judgment of a court of competent jurisdiction, or by the Packers. See id. § 38-9-1(6).

    Further, the trial court correctly awarded the Packers $3000 plus reasonable attorney fees and costs pursuant to section 38-9-4(3) because Cline stated under oath that the purpose of the lien was not to recover the money from his in-laws but to protect himself from a claim that his in-laws might have made on his residence as part of the forthcoming divorce action between the Packers' daughter and himself.(1) Accordingly, we affirm.

    Because the Packers were awarded attorney fees and costs below and because they are the prevailing party on appeal, we grant the Packers their costs and reasonable attorney fees on appeal. See Valcarce v. Fitzgerald, 961 P.2d 305, 319 (Utah 1998) ("[W]hen a party who received attorney fees below prevails on appeal, the party is also entitled to fees reasonably incurred on appeal." (quotations and citations omitted)). Accordingly, we remand for a determination of reasonable attorney fees and costs in addressing this appeal.

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Judith M. Billings,

Presiding Judge

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WE CONCUR:

______________________________

Russell W. Bench,

Associate Presiding Judge

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Norman H. Jackson, Judge

1. The Packers argue that they should be able to recover damages and costs under the mechanics' lien statute. However, because Cline is not a person entitled to file a mechanics' lien under Utah Code section 38-1-3, the Packers may not recover under the mechanics' lien statute. See Utah Code Ann. § 38-1-3 (2002); see also Utah Code Ann. § 38-9-2(3) (2002) ("This chapter does not apply to a person entitled to a lien under Section 38-1-3 who files a lien pursuant to Title 38, Chapter 1, Mechanics' Liens.").