Statutory Lien Priorities

Secured credit attorneys often ignore competing interests of statutory lien claimants when planning and documenting financial transactions. One of the primary reasons for the lack of attention is that statutory lien claimants are difficult to identify and investigate. Statutory liens can arise under a myriad of statutes, and if a debtor has assets in several states and counties, finding the liens can be cumbersome and expensive. Moreover, because the laws that establish these liens are often scattered throughout the statute books, and are far from uniform in their scope and procedural mandates, learning the law in this area is difficult. This paper, while not a comprehensive review of statutory liens in every state, provides an overview that can assist a secured creditor's legal counsel in developing a strategy for managing the problem