Lien on Wells and Equipment

C.R.S. tit. 38, art. 24

in effect

C.R.S. § 38-24-101 Property subject to lien

38-24-101. Property subject to lien. Every person, firm, or corporation, whether as contractor, subcontractor, materialman, or laborer, who performs labor upon or furnishes machinery, material, fuel, explosives, power, or supplies for sinking, repairing, altering, or operating any gas well, oil well, or other well or for constructing, repairing, or operating any oil derrick, oil tank, oil pipeline or water pipeline, pump or pumping station, transportation or communication line, or gasoline plant and refinery by virtue of a contract, express or implied, with the owner or lessee of any interest in real estate or with the trustee, agent, or receiver of any such owner, part owner, or lessee shall have a lien to secure the payment thereof upon the properties mentioned belonging to the party contracting with the lien claimants, and upon the machinery, materials, and supplies so furnished, and upon any well upon and in which such machinery, materials, and supplies have been placed and used, and upon all other wells, buildings, and appurtenances, and the interest, leasehold, or otherwise, of such owner, part owner, or lessee in the lot or land upon which said improvements are located, or to which they may be removed, to the extent of the right, title, and interest of the owner, part owner, or lessee, at the time the work was commenced or machinery, materials, and supplies were begun to be furnished by the lien claimant or by the contractor under the original contract; and such lien shall extend to any subsequently acquired interest of any such owner, part owner, or lessee.

C.R.S. § 38-24-102 Other property subject to lien

38-24-102. Other property subject to lien. Every person, firm, or corporation who performs labor or furnishes machinery, material, fuel, explosives, or supplies to a contractor or subcontractor shall have a lien upon the properties and premises mentioned in section 38-24-101 to the same extent and in the same manner as the original contractor for the amount due for such machinery, material, fuel, explosives, or supplies furnished or labor performed. All liens created by virtue of this article in any particular case shall be of equal rank and validity, except liens for labor which shall be preferred.

C.R.S. § 38-24-103 Security interest invalid - when

38-24-103. Security interest invalid - when. No chattel mortgage or security interest shall be valid as against any person, firm, or corporation entitled to a lien under the provisions of this article; but no mortgage, lien, or other encumbrance existing and recorded as provided by law at the time of the inception of the lien provided for in this article shall be affected thereby.

C.R.S. § 38-24-104 Lien statement - when filed

38-24-104. Lien statement - when filed. (1) Every person wishing to avail himself of the benefits of this article must file with the county clerk and recorder of the county in which the property or premises mentioned in this article are situated, and within six months after the machinery, materials, fuel, explosives, or supplies have been furnished or the labor performed, a statement containing: (a) A just and true account of the amount due him after allowing all credits; (b) A description of the property to be charged with such lien sufficient for its proper identification; and (c) A verification by affidavit. (2) No error in the account shall effect the validity of the lien by the inclusion of items erroneously taken in, if such items can be identified. An open running account shall constitute a single contract, and in such case the lien shall relate back to the first item of material furnished or labor performed, as the case may be, and the six-month filing period shall begin to run for the whole account from the date of the last item.

C.R.S. § 38-24-105 Action commenced within six months

38-24-105. Action commenced within six months. Every person, firm, or corporation filing a statement as provided in section 38-24-104 and claiming a lien under this article shall commence suit thereon in the district court of the county in which the statement is filed not later than six months after the date of such filing, and the lien shall remain in force until the final determination of such suit. Costs shall be divided according to the justice of the case.

C.R.S. § 38-24-106 Perfecting of lien on removed property - when

38-24-106. Perfecting of lien on removed property - when. Whenever any person removes any property subject to a lien under this article out of the county in which the statement has been filed, the lien claimant may file, within thirty days after receiving notice of such removal, with the county clerk and recorder of the county to which such property has been removed, an inventory of said property so removed, showing the amount due and unpaid thereon, which inventory shall be filed in the lien records of such county. Such filing shall operate as a notice of the existence of the lien, and it shall thereupon attach to and extend to the leasehold and other premises, properties, and appurtenances with which said property so removed has been put in use or to which it has attached if it is of the kind and character enumerated in section 38-24-101. If said leasehold, premises, properties, and appurtenances belong to some party other than the party originally contracting with the lien claimant, the lien shall be limited to the property and chattels so removed. The benefits of this section as regards removal shall apply even though such removal is to another locality in the same county.

C.R.S. § 38-24-107 Lienholder's consent in removal or sale

38-24-107. Lienholder's consent in removal or sale. When the lien provided in this article attaches to the property covered thereby in the manner indicated in this article, no one shall sell or remove the property subject to said lien, or cause the same to be removed from such lands or premises, or otherwise sell or dispose of the same without the written consent of the lien claimant under this article. In the event of any violation of the provisions of this section, the lien claimant shall be entitled to the possession of the property to which said lien has attached, wherever the same may be found, and shall hold the same pending the disposition of the action provided for in this article.

C.R.S. § 38-24-108 Penalty for removing property

38-24-108. Penalty for removing property. Any person who removes or causes to be removed any property covered by the lien provided for in this article from the place where such property was located when such lien was filed, without the written consent of the lien claimant, is guilty of theft of such property and, upon conviction thereof, shall be punished accordingly.

C.R.S. § 38-24-109 Assignment of lien

38-24-109. Assignment of lien. Any person, firm, or corporation entitled to a lien under this article may assign his claim before or after filing the lien statement provided for in section 38-24-104, and in such event the assignee shall be clothed with all the rights inherent by virtue of this article in the assignor.

C.R.S. § 38-24-110 Provisions of article cumulative

38-24-110. Provisions of article cumulative. The provisions of this article are cumulative and in addition to all lien rights and remedies already provided by the laws of this state.

C.R.S. § 38-24-111 Liability against owner of land

38-24-111. Liability against owner of land. Nothing in this article shall fix a liability against the owner of the land, except when such owner is a party to the contract with the lien claimant.

Source: Open US Law by Vaquill AI (CC BY 4.0)URL: https://leg.colorado.gov/sites/default/files/images/olls/crs2024-title-38.docxFetched: 10/6/2026