99 A. 501 | Conn. | 1916
The claimant Catalano, having furnished materials and rendered services in the construction of two dwelling-house buildings having no connection with each other in either construction or intended use, and nothing in common save that both stood upon land that was purchased by its owner as a single piece, but susceptible of division, and were built under one contract, — filed a certificate of lien for the amount due him for such materials and services upon the entire tract of land so bought, and upon which both building stood. That his purpose and intention was to claim a lien upon the two buildings is, notwithstanding the use of the singular number in the certificate, apparent, and assumed by his counsel as well as by counsel for Miller. The principles enunciated inWilcox v. Woodruff,
We do not understand counsel for Catalano to contest this proposition, but they urge that his offer made below to release such portion of the property as was wrongfully included under the lien he filed, should have been accepted, thereby securing to him a valid lien upon one of the buildings and its appurtenant land.
In support of this contention they rely upon the recent cases of Tramonte v. Wilens,
Here a very different situation is presented. It is not one where property, which could not have been subjected to the lien, is included in the certificate with property against which it was properly filed. All of the property was subject to Catalano's claims of lien, but none of it to a single lien for the amount claimed. As to no portion was the certificate properly filed. It purported to make two entirely separate and independent properties as an entirety holden for materials and services which went into the construction of both. By it an attempt was made to charge the two properties with an indebtedness of $1,100, whereas neither both together, nor either one, nor any part of either one, was chargeable with that amount. Catalano's offer to release so much of the property as was wrongfully included in his lien did not, therefore, meet the situation. All of it was wrongfully included, and no release from the operation of the lien of a portion of the property could have been made which would have made the certificate a proper one. Its essential weakness is far more radical than that it covers too much property. It is that it conforms in no way to the statutory requirements, and contrary to them attempts to secure an indebtedness which no one lien could be made to secure, and to do it upon property none of which was chargeable with it. *174
It is true, as Catalano's counsel urge, that an honest mistake in overstating the amount for which a lien is claimed will not invalidate it, and that in such case it will be enforced for the rightful amount. Marston v.Kenyon,
We have thus far taken only casual notice of the fact that Catalano in his certificate of lien certified that the materials were furnished and services rendered by him in the construction of "a certain building" on the described property, and that he claimed a lien on "said building," together with the land on which it stands. It now appears that the "certain building" and "said building" was two buildings, which could in no way be *175 regarded as one, or as appurtenant to one another. In view of our conclusions hereinbefore stated, we have no occasion to inquire as to the effect of this inaccuracy of statement.
There is no error.
In this opinion the other judges concurred.