In this case, an electrical company installed and relocated grain bins on the plaintiff’s property. The defendant failed to pay the plaintiff’s bill, so the plaintiff filed a mechanic’s lien for the materials and labor furnished in the project. The plaintiff sued to foreclose the lien and claimed that they were owed damages for breach of contract. A mechanic’s lien is a security interest in the title to property for the benefit of those who have supplied labor or materials that improve the property. The lien exists for both real and personal property. It is purely a statutory device.
The defendant denied the existence of a contract, and also claimed that the defendant was not entitled to payment due to inferior work. The trial court refused to enforce the lien, and tried the case as a negligence case. The outcome at trial was that the defendant was ordered to pay the full amount of the plaintiff’s claim and the plaintiff’s attorney fees. The appellate court affirmed. There was insufficient evidence to establish that the work performed was done in an inadequate manner. R&G Electric, Inc. v. Weydert, No. 7-854/07-0156, 2007 Iowa App. LEXIS 1271 (Iowa Ct. App. Nov. 29, 2007).