plans have been made but the property has remained untouched, the courts consider that the plans have not been for the improvement of the property. If the work is undertaken, however, even though it is not carried to completion, the technical requirements are complied with and the lien right will be recognized.

In some

As I have had occasion to note, the lien laws in each state differ materially and no rules can be laid down which will cover all of the lien statutes. In every case, the owner will do well to post himself, or be sure that his architect is posted, with respect to the lien requirements of the state in which the work is done. states there is in effect what is sometimes known as a stop notice. This is a notice to the owner of the claim of the subcontractor or materialman. The effect of such a notice is to make the payment by the owner thereafter of additional sums to the contractor at the owner's peril, and to cause the owner to withhold any further payments to the contractor, until the amount due to the materialman or subcontractor has been properly adjusted. The statutes of the different states vary also with respect to the necessity for the filing or recording of the construction contract. In some instances, a lien based on the construction contract will not be allowed unless

the contract has been properly recorded. In other instances, the filing of the contract will be held to limit the liability of the owner and to bar any lien by subcontractors or materialmen. The owner's attorney can readily advise him as to the necessity of filing the contract in a given jurisdiction. The architect also will be advised on this point, ordinarily, and be able to advise his client as to the proper course to be pursued.

Claims and liens by employees of the general contractor will not prove troublesome or a special problem, if the operation is intelligently conducted by the architect and the work carried forward in such a way that proper assurance is had that, as the owner lives up to his obligations to the contractor, the latter in turn fulfills his obligations to his subcontractors and material

men.

There is considerable divergence between the laws of the different states with respect to the nature of the lien of the subcontractor, and the protection which is afforded him by the various lien statutes. In some states, he is given a socalled direct lien on the property, without regard to the rights of the contractor. In other states he is given a so-called "lien by subrogation." Where this is the rule, before the subcontractor can secure a lien, it must appear that

the contractor himself is entitled to one and that there are sums due to the contractor, from the owner, to which the subcontractor may lay claim by reason of his services to the contractor.

In those states where the lien of the subcontractor is by subrogation, the subcontractor, if the general contractor fails to complete the contract, may be able to enforce his lien to the extent only of the sum due the contractor at the time that the lien claim is asserted. To attempt to state a general rule covering the rights of subcontractors or materialmen generally in the United States would be a practical impossibility. Any general statement would only be calculated to mislead the reader. The sole course which one can follow with safety and prudence is to investigate the lien statute and court decisions on lien legislation, in the state where the work is done, and to secure proper legal advice in this connection where necessary. If this course be followed, the owner will have accurate information as to the lien rights of the subcontractor and others and a knowledge of the circumstances under which, and the extent to which, liens can be properly filed and enforced by them.

Where the cost of the building is a substantial one, it is of real importance that the contract should provide that the contractor will submit

to the architect memoranda containing schedules giving the values of the component parts of the job. If the architect receives a statement from the contractor showing the division of the latter's charges as between foundation work, carpentry work, plumbing work, and the like, he will be able to tell whether the contractor has properly distributed these charges. If the contractor has included an undue proportion of his profit on the earlier items of the construction work, as for instance on the excavation and foundation work, it is important that this fact should be established. Otherwise, in the event of the insolvency of the contractor or of his inability, for any reason, to proceed with the job, the owner is likely to find that the contractor has received a substantial share of his profit on the earlier payments, made during the course of the work, and that the cost of completing the job is proportionately higher than it should be.

The question of fire and liability insurance during the progress of the work merits careful attention. Ordinarily, the contractor is required to maintain insurance sufficient to protect himself from any claims under workmen's compensation acts and from any other claims for personal injuries, death included, resulting from the work done under the contract. The owner

will do well to maintain contingent liability insurance in this same connection.

With respect to fire insurance, the owner must remember that the insurance should cover not only the building, as it is erected, but the materials on hand. These materials may belong to the contractor or to the owner, depending on the nature of the contract between them. In the ordinary case of a fixed price contract, they will be the property of the contractor, as he will be required to furnish all of the materials necessary to the proper completion of the work. In some cases, the owner is required to take out all of the insurance, covering both the property the title to which rests in him and also the property which belongs to the contractor. On the other hand, the owner may insure merely the building proper and leave it to the contractor to cover his own interests by insuring the materials on the site. The Standard Form of Contract of the American Institute of Architects adopts the first course and provides as follows:

"Art. 21. Fire Insurance.-The Owner shall effect and maintain fire insurance upon the entire structure on which the work of this contract is to be done and upon all materials, in or adjacent thereto and intended for use thereon, to at least eighty per cent. of the insurable value