N.Y. Lien Law § 10: Filing of notice of lien

§ 10. Filing of notice of lien. 1. Notice of lien may be filed at any

time during the progress of the work and the furnishing of the

materials, or, within eight months after the completion of the contract,

or the final performance of the work, or the final furnishing of the

materials, dating from the last item of work performed or materials

furnished; provided, however, that where the improvement is related to

real property improved or to be improved with a single family dwelling,

the notice of lien may be filed at any time during the progress of the

work and the furnishing of the materials, or, within four months after

the completion of the contract, or the final performance of the work, or

the final furnishing of the materials, dating from the last item of work

performed or materials furnished; and provided further where the notice

of lien is for retainage, the notice of lien may be filed within ninety

days after the date the retainage was due to be released; except that in

the case of a lien by a real estate broker, the notice of lien may be

filed only after the performance of the brokerage services and execution

of lease by both lessor and lessee and only if a copy of the alleged

written agreement of employment or compensation is annexed to the notice

of lien, provided that where the payment pursuant to the written

agreement of employment or compensation is to be made in installments,

then a notice of lien may be filed within eight months after the final

payment is due, but in no event later than a date five years after the

first payment was made. For purposes of this section, the term "single

family dwelling" shall not include a dwelling unit which is a part of a

subdivision that has been filed with a municipality in which the

subdivision is located when at the time the lien is filed, such property

in the subdivision is owned by the developer for purposes other than his

personal residence. For purposes of this section, "developer" shall mean

and include any private individual, partnership, trust or corporation

which improves two or more parcels of real property with single family

dwellings pursuant to a common scheme or plan. The notice of lien must

be filed in the clerk's office of the county where the property is

situated. If such property is situated in two or more counties, the

notice of lien shall be filed in the office of the clerk of each of such

counties. The county clerk of each county shall provide and keep a book

to be called the "lien docket," which shall be suitably ruled in columns

headed "owners," "lienors," "lienor's attorney," "property," "amount,"

"time of filing," "proceedings had," in each of which he shall enter the

particulars of the notice, properly belonging therein. The date, hour

and minute of the filing of each notice of lien shall be entered in the

proper column. Except where the county clerk maintains a block index,

the names of the owners shall be arranged in such book in alphabetical

order. The validity of the lien and the right to file a notice thereof

shall not be affected by the death of the owner before notice of the

lien is filed.

2. Where the county clerk indexes liens in a block index, every notice

of lien presented to the clerk of a county of filing, in order to

entitle the same to be filed, shall contain in the body thereof, or

shall have endorsed thereon, a designation of the number of every block,

on the land map of the county, which is affected by the notice of lien.

The county clerk shall cause such notice of lien to be entered in the

block index suitably ruled to contain the columns listed in the

preceding paragraph, under the block number of every block so

designated. In cases where a notice of lien shall have been filed

without such designation or with an erroneous designation, the county

clerk, on presentation of proper proof thereof, shall enter such

instrument in the proper index, under the proper block number of every

block in which the land affected is situated, and shall, at the same

time, make a note of such entry and of the date thereof in every place

in which such instrument may have been erroneously indexed, opposite the

entry thereof, and also upon the instrument itself, if the same be in

his possession or produced to him for the purpose, and the filing of

such instrument shall be constructive notice as to property in the block

not duly designated at the time of such filing only from the time when

the same shall be properly indexed.

A county clerk may adopt a new indexing system utilizing

electro-mechanical, electronic or any other method he deems suitable for

maintaining the indexes.