Massachusetts General Laws

Mass. Gen. Laws ch. 254, § 23 (2026)

Original owner; death or conveyance of interest; action to enforce lien

✓ current as of July 2026

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Section 23. If the person for whom the labor or material has been furnished or professional services have been performed dies or conveys away his estate or interest before the commencement of a civil action to enforce a lien, it may be commenced and prosecuted against his heirs or against the persons holding the estate or interest which he had in the land at the time the labor or material was furnished or professional services were performed. If the action was commenced in the lifetime of such person, it may be prosecuted against his executor, administrator, heirs or assigns as if the estate or interest has been mortgaged to secure the debt.

Notes of Decisions

Cited in 3 cases, 1998–2011 · leading case: Trace Constr., Inc. v. Dana Barros Sports Complex, LLC, 945 N.E.2d 833 (Mass. 2011).

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Trace Constr., Inc. v. Dana Barros Sports Complex, LLC, 945 N.E.2d 833 (Mass. 2011). · cites it 2× “By contrast, where the leasehold is conveyed from one tenant to another, a leasehold remains in existence and will continue to be encumbered; the statute states this latter principle explicitly with respect to mechanic’s liens.”

Golden v. Gen. Builders Supply LLC, 807 N.E.2d 822 (Mass. 2004). “Although the issue is not before us in the present appeal, it may well be that a mechanic’s lien enforcement action would qualify as a compulsory counterclaim that must be asserted in the property owner’s action seeking to discharge that same lien.”

Nat'l Lumber Co. v. LeFrancois Constr. Corp., 1998 Mass. App. Div. 216 (Mass. Dist. Ct., App. Div. 1998). “Additionally, G.L.c. 254, §23 provides as follows: If the person for whom the labor has been performed or furnished or the material has been furnished dies or conveys away his estate or interest before the commencement of a civil action to enforce a lien, it may be commenced and…”

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