Under Florida law, the standard priority rule of construction liens is first in time; first in right. Florida’s Construction Lien Law creates an exception to this rule where a notice of commencement is in effect. In that circumstance, a construction lien recorded where the notice of commencement is in effect (not terminated or expired) attaches and takes priority as of the date the notice of commencement was recorded. § 713.07(2), Fla. Stat. This is referred to as the “relation back” doctrine. Where, however, a notice of commencement is not in effect at the time a construction lien is recorded (due to an owner’s failure to record, expiration or proper termination), the construction lien does not “relate back” to the date the notice of commencement was recorded, and instead, the construction lien attaches and takes priority as of the date the construction lien was recorded. § 713.07(2), Fla. Stat.
Although a notice of commencement normally expires one year after the date of its recording, Section 713.13(1)(c), Florida Statutes, an owner may shorten a notice of commencement’s period of effectiveness by recording (and serving, if required) a notice of termination. Upon the recordation (and service, if required) of an enforceable notice of termination, the notice of commencement’s period of effectiveness is terminated 30 days after the notice of termination is recorded (unless the notice of termination specifies a period of time greater than 30 days). § 713.132(5), Fla. Stat.
Assume that the owner of the subject property recorded a notice of commencement for improvements on June 5, 2025. The property owner subsequently recorded a notice of termination pursuant to section 713.132(1), Florida Statutes, on August 11, 2025. The notice of termination expressly stated that the notice of commencement “shall be terminated pursuant to the notice 30 days after the notice of termination is recorded.” Three days after the recordation of the notice of termination, a construction lien was recorded. Because the notice of commencement had not yet been terminated by operation of the August 11, 2025 notice of termination (as it had not yet been 30 days), the construction lien attached and took priority as of the date the notice of commencement was recorded on June 5, 2025.
