In Washington state, those unpaid for furnishing labor or materials to a construction project must file their mechanics lien within 90 days of last furnishing to the project. The deadline is very strictly adhered to, as all mechanics lien deadlines are. Except that the Washington mechanics lien deadline may be extended for a very short period of time in one circumstance: if the deadline ends on a weekend or holiday.
This situation arises in every state, and with virtually every legal deadline under the sun. You start counting on one day, and then if your count ends on a weekend or a holiday, the question arises as to whether the filing must be made on the business day before the weekend or holiday, or on the next business day.
Each state answers the question differently, and sometimes, one state may have different rules depending on the filing type. One must be very careful in proceeding.
In Washington, insofar as mechanics lien filings are concerned, if your deadline to file ends on a weekend or a holiday, you can file the mechanics lien on the next business day and be timely in your recording. Of course, you don’t want to wait until the very last minute to file your mechanics lien (because things can go wrong, as we warn about here). But, if you find yourself up against the deadline, this is an important piece of information to know, as it may make or break your mechanics lien claim.
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