Arkansas mechanics lien: what to do when a customer won't pay, the deadlines, and the letter to send

Published November 4, 2026 · Arkansas Code, court rules and fees checked November 4, 2026

• Free. The demand letter and deadline worksheet download as Google Docs, Word or PDF, and the links come by email.
• Deepsel is our product: free estimate, invoice and scheduling software for contractors (scheduling and dispatch, quotes, invoicing, card payments). The section before the FAQ says where it fits and where it doesn't.
• Not legal advice. Every rule below links to the statute, court rule or state page it comes from. A lien that goes wrong can cost you the owner's attorney's fee, so have an Arkansas attorney look at yours before you file.

In Arkansas you have 120 days after your last day of work to file a mechanics lien on the house, and you must give the owner written notice of your claim at least 10 days before you file. On a home or any building of up to four units, though, the lien only exists if the owner received the state's Important Notice to Owner before you started. Once the lien is filed, you have 15 months to sue on it or it dies.^1,3,4,5

Most unpaid bills never get that far. You send the invoice, then a demand letter, and in Arkansas that letter can double as the 10-day lien notice, which is how the free template below is built. For $5,000 or less, small claims court is the other road, and it costs about $65 to file.^16,18

One electrician, in his first year contracting, put the problem plainly: "He refused to pay a partial payment after 90% of the work was done." The first reply that mattered asked a question: "Did you provide a "Notice to Owner" at time of contract?"²⁸ That commenter was in Florida. Arkansas has the same kind of rule, and it decides whether you have a lien at all.

This is written for an electrician doing house work, with or without a company name. Plumbers and HVAC contractors on homes are in the same spot, and other trades get a short note near the end. I read Arkansas's lien chapter (Arkansas Code 18-44), the small claims rule and fee statutes, the interest and attorney's fee statutes, and the licensing chapters on November 4, 2026. The wording of the Important Notice and how to put it in your contract are on the Arkansas contract template page.

Arkansas mechanics lien deadlines at a glance

Day 0 is the last day you did work or delivered materials on the job. Count calendar days, and don't count on a deadline that lands on a weekend sliding to Monday: file a few days early.

An example, with my arithmetic. Your last day on the job is Friday, October 2, 2026. Day 120 is Saturday, January 30, 2027, so plan to file by Friday, January 29. The 10-day notice then has to be served by Tuesday, January 19. Filed on January 29, the lien needs its lawsuit and lis pendens by April 29, 2028, which is a Saturday too. Don't cut it that close. Send the notice the week the invoice goes past due.

What to do first when a customer won't pay

These steps are the same in most states. Where Arkansas law changes them, I say so.

1. Decide whether to stop or keep going. I found no Arkansas law that lets you stop work on a private job for non-payment: nothing in the lien chapter, and no prompt-payment law for private home jobs. Your contract decides. The Arkansas contract template lets you stop after 7 days' written notice. Without a clause like that, walking off can hand the customer a breach claim. "I was always taught to Finish the job no matter what," one commercial electrician wrote.³⁰ Whatever you decide, leave nothing open or unsafe.
2. Put it in writing the same day. A short email or text: what's done, what's owed, the invoice number, the due date. Keep your signed quote or contract, your copy of the Important Notice to Owner, and dated photos of the finished work.
3. Send the invoice, then the demand letter. Arkansas sets no wording for a demand letter. But the lien law's 10-day notice only has to tell the owner that you hold a claim against the building, how much, and from whom it's due, served by a method the law accepts.³ Put that in the demand letter, send it the right way, and the same letter starts your lien clock. The template does both.
4. Offer a payment plan, in writing, if they ask. A partial payment or a written acknowledgment of the debt extends the five-year limit for suing on a written contract.¹⁵ It doesn't pause the 120 days for the lien. If the plan runs past day 110, send the notice and file the lien anyway, and release it within 10 days of the last payment, as the law requires.⁸
5. Call a lawyer when the customer says the work is defective, when the bill is over $5,000, when you're not sure you gave the Important Notice, when the owner bonds or protests your lien, and before the 15-month lawsuit. A lien protest you lose costs you the owner's attorney's fee.⁶

The chasing is the part nobody likes. "Tired of hounding people like I'm a nagging parent, but unless I do, they take forever to pay," an electrician wrote.²⁹ A written schedule helps: invoice on the day, a reminder at the due date, the demand letter a week or two later, and the lien dates on your calendar from day 0.

Interest and attorney's fees in Arkansas

• The 17% cap. Arkansas's constitution caps interest on "loans or contracts" at 17% a year, and a contract above it is "void as to principal and interest."¹² A common "1.5% a month" late charge is 18% a year. Keep any late-payment interest in your contract at or under 17% a year, and don't add interest your contract doesn't provide for.
• No rate written down. When a contract provides for interest but names no rate, the statute sets 6% a year.¹³
• After a judgment. A judgment on a contract carries the contract's rate or the Federal Reserve primary credit rate plus 2%, whichever is greater, never above 17%. The court can add interest from before the judgment "if appropriate."¹³
• Attorney's fees. In a lawsuit on a bill, an open account, labor or services, or a breach of contract, "the prevailing party may be allowed a reasonable attorney's fee," unless the contract says otherwise.¹⁴ That cuts both ways: lose, and the customer can ask for theirs. On a lien suit the rule is firmer (below).

The Arkansas mechanics lien on a home

A mechanics lien (the statute says mechanics' and materialmen's lien) is a claim against the house and up to an acre of land for the value of your work, which a court can enforce by selling the property.⁸ Here's how it works on a home, in order.

First check: did the owner get the Important Notice before you started?

"No lien upon residential real estate containing four (4) or fewer units may be acquired" unless the owner "has received, by personal delivery or by certified mail, a copy of the notice," and the contractor's duty is to give it "before the commencement of work." If you didn't, you "may not avail himself or herself of the benefit of the lien," and you face a fine of up to $1,000.^1,2 It covers rentals and duplexes too, and every job size. The exact wording, in bold capitals, is on the contract template page.

Three things follow from it:

• No notice, no lien, but you can still sue for the money. Until 2021 a contractor who skipped the notice was "barred from bringing an action either at law or in equity, including without limitation quantum meruit." Act 984 of 2021 cut that back to losing the lien.¹
• You don't need a written contract for the lien. The law's contractor is anyone who contracts "orally or in writing" with the owner.⁸ You do need proof of the notice: the affidavit you file swears you gave it and attaches a copy.⁴
• The lien reaches the family home. Arkansas's constitution protects the homestead of a married person or head of a family from judgments, "except ... laborers' or mechanics' liens for improving the same."¹¹ A small claims judgment can't force the sale of the customer's house. A valid lien for work on it can.

Can an unlicensed contractor file a lien in Arkansas?

The lien chapter doesn't mention licenses. The licensing laws do, and they differ by trade:

• Electrical work. No one may "perform electrical work in this state" without a license, and the penalty is up to $1,000 a day.²¹ I searched the whole electricians' chapter: it says nothing about liens or lawsuits. A licensed electrician working within the license has the same lien rights as anyone. For someone unlicensed, the statute is silent, and I wouldn't build a collection plan on a court filling that gap in their favor.
• A journeyman on his own. The board's rule says a journeyman "cannot contract with the general public to plan, lay out, or supervise" electrical work without employing a full-time master.²² The rule doesn't say what happens to the lien. Expect the customer's lawyer to raise it.
• HVAC work. Unlicensed HVACR work gets no "mechanic's and materialman's lien" at all.²³ Set a condenser without an HVACR license and that part of the bill has no lien.
• Non-electrical work over $2,000 on a house. The Residential Contractors Committee's law exempts licensees of other Arkansas boards working "within the scope of the license held," which on my reading covers your electrical work. It doesn't cover framing and drywall. Run those too without the Committee's license, and you "shall not bring an action" on the contract "or for quantum meruit."²⁴ A lien dies unless you sue within 15 months, so on my reading that lien goes as well. The license lines are on the master electrician license page.
• Commercial jobs of $50,000 or more without the Contractors Licensing Board's license: "no action may be brought either at law or in equity," with a way back only if you pay the board's fines and apply for the license.²⁵

The 120 days: what counts as your last day

You file "within one hundred twenty (120) days after the things specified in this subchapter have been furnished or the work or labor done or performed."⁴ The statute doesn't define the last day, and I found no Arkansas appeals court ruling on warranty or punch-list work in this research. So count from the last day you did real work under the contract or delivered materials for it. A warranty callback, standing by for the final inspection, or the day the utility reconnects: don't count on any of them to restart the clock. Keep proof of the last day: the visit record, dated photos, the supply house receipt.

The 10-day notice: Arkansas's notice of intent to lien

Before you file, you must "give ten (10) days' notice before the filing of the lien ... to the owner ... that he or she holds a claim against the building or improvement, setting forth the amount and from whom it is due."³ There's no required form. Any of four delivery methods works:

• a sheriff or other officer who serves court papers;
• any person who "would be a competent witness," who then signs an affidavit that they delivered it;
• mail "with a return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee," which at the post office is certified mail, return receipt, restricted delivery;
• any service that gives "written, third-party verification of delivery" where the owner lives, works or does business.

Mailed notice is complete when you mail it. If the owner refuses it or never picks it up, mail a copy by first-class mail right away, keep the unopened envelope as your proof, and go ahead with the lien.³ If the owner lives out of state with no agent in the county, or is hiding, the notice can be filed with the county recorder instead.⁸

How to file a mechanics lien in Arkansas

You file with the clerk of the circuit court in the county where the house is. The filing has two parts, and the clerk "shall not file a lien account that does not contain the affidavits and attachments required":⁴

1. The lien account. "A just and true account of the demand due or owing to him or her after allowing all credits," with "a correct description of the property," verified by affidavit, meaning signed under oath before a notary. A street address isn't a correct description. Copy the legal description from the owner's deed.
2. The affidavit of notice. A sworn statement that you complied with the notice rules, "A copy of each applicable notice" (the Important Notice to Owner and the 10-day notice), and "A copy of the proof of service" of the 10-day notice: the green card or delivery record, or the signed affidavit of the person who delivered it.

The fee is the recording fee for materialmen's liens: $15 for the first page and $5 for each page after.⁹ Six pages comes to $40.

Then serve the owner notice that the lien is filed, by officer, by certified mail with return receipt and restricted delivery, or by verified delivery. If the claim isn't paid within 20 days of that and you have to sue, "the court shall allow the successful" claimant a reasonable attorney's fee. If the owner wins, the owner gets theirs.⁷

Enforce it within 15 months, or it's gone

"All actions under this subchapter shall be commenced within fifteen (15) months after filing the lien," and the lien doesn't survive past 15 months unless within that time you file the lawsuit and a lis pendens, a notice of the lawsuit recorded with the county recorder.⁵ That suit is in circuit court: small claims can't hear claims against real estate.^16,17 The court finds what's owed, up to the amount in your lien, "to be levied out of the property."⁸ The owner can also clear the house by posting a bond for the lien amount, and then you collect from the bond.⁶

What a wrong lien costs you

• A protest. The owner can sue to protest the lien, limited to whether it was filed in the right form and the notices were given. If it wasn't or they weren't, the court discharges it, and "The prevailing party shall be entitled to a reasonable attorney's fee and the costs of the protest."⁶ No Important Notice means a lien that loses a protest.
• An overstated amount. You swear the account is "just and true ... after allowing all credits." The court can't award more than the lien claims, and an honest miss on credits doesn't sink it: the statute says so when the creditor "unintentionally failed" to show them.⁸ Recording something you know isn't genuine to cloud the title is a misdemeanor, with triple damages, punitive damages and fees, though that law doesn't reach "a bona fide filing of ... materialmen's lien."¹⁰
• Losing the lien suit. The owner gets a reasonable attorney's fee.⁷
• Not releasing it. Once you're paid, enter satisfaction with the clerk. After 10 days you're liable for the owner's damages and court costs.⁸

Subcontractors and suppliers versus the prime contractor

Working as a sub for a builder or remodeler, you have a lien too, and so does the supply house.⁸ On a home, though, no sub or supplier gets one unless the owner "has received at least one (1) copy of the notice." Any potential lien claimant may give it, and a copy given before you start covers you.¹ Don't count on the builder: hand the owner a copy yourself before you start, or mail it certified.

When you're the prime and your sub or supplier files a lien, you must defend it "at his or her own expense," and the owner may hold back that amount from you.⁸ Taking the owner's payment without paying off liens you know about, intending to defraud, is a felony over $25.⁸ Pay the supply house out of each draw. On apartment buildings of five or more units and commercial property the rules differ: no notice before work, but subs and suppliers must notify the owner and the contractor within 75 days.¹

Lien waivers: when to sign them

Arkansas has no required lien waiver form; I found none in the lien chapter. The Important Notice itself tells the owner they "MAY ALSO REQUIRE THE CONTRACTOR TO PRESENT LIEN WAIVERS" before paying in full, and may pay you and a supplier with a joint check.¹ So the wording is whatever you sign. Sign a waiver for a payment only once that money is in your account, limit it to that amount and date, and never sign a final waiver before the final payment clears. Get waivers from your own supplier and subs in the same order.

Other ways to collect in Arkansas

Arkansas small claims court: up to $5,000, about $65 to file

• The limit. Contract claims up to $5,000, not counting interest, costs and attorney's fees.¹⁶
• The fee. $50 to file in the small claims division plus a $15 court technology fee, which is the $65 Bentonville's court lists, plus service by the sheriff, a process server or certified mail.^18,19,20
• Where. The district court in the county where the customer lives or where the work was to be done.¹⁷
• Who. No lawyers on either side. If one appears, the case moves to the regular civil docket. A corporation can sue there only if it has no more than three stockholders or is family-held; the rule speaks of corporations, so an LLC should ask the clerk. Collection agencies and anyone who bought the debt can't file there.¹⁶
• Timing. The customer has 30 days to answer, and either side can appeal to circuit court within 30 days of the judgment.²⁰

Small claims is cheap and fast, and it's the right tool when you have no lien. Its weak spot is collecting: a judgment can't be enforced against the homestead of a married owner or head of a family.¹¹ Over $5,000 it's a regular civil case, and that's when a lawyer earns the fee.

Prompt-payment law

I found no Arkansas prompt-payment statute for private home jobs. Your payment terms, late charges and right to stop come from your contract.

Collection agencies

Collection agencies must be licensed by the Arkansas State Board of Collection Agencies "if: (1) they are located in Arkansas or (2) they contact Arkansas residents."²⁶ Check the license on the board's site before you sign one up. An agency can't use small claims court, so file there yourself first if the bill is under $5,000.¹⁶

Card payments and chargebacks

If the customer paid by card and then disputes the charge, the processor pulls the money plus a dispute fee, and you usually get 7 to 21 days to answer before you lose by default. Answer with the signed quote, the invoice and your photos.²⁷

For electricians: bill by stage, and don't let an inspection hold your money

The fewer dollars ride on the last day, the less a non-payer costs you. One electrician's schedule on residential work: "I'll bill 20% for a deposit, 50% after rough wiring, 15% upon start of the finish wiring, and 15% upon completion."³¹ Arkansas sets no cap on deposits (the contract template page has the rules on cancellation refunds). Tie each payment to something the owner can see: material on site, rough-in inspection passed, final inspection passed.

Inspections and the utility are where electrical money stalls. Entergy schedules a service connection only after the local authority tells it "all required permits and inspections are passed and approved."³² Little Rock wants a rough inspection before any wiring is covered and a final before current is used.³³ (The master electrician license page has more on permits and utilities.) If the final inspection or the reconnect is waiting on someone else, bill for the work you've done. Your lien clock runs from your last day of work, not from the inspector's visit or the meter set, so don't let a delay you don't control eat your 120 days.

Other trades on the same job. HVAC work without an HVACR license has no lien.²³ Residential roofing needs a roofing registration from the Residential Contractors Committee, and an unregistered roofer can't sue a consumer on the contract or for quantum meruit.²⁴ Remodelers and home improvement contractors need the residential license over $2,000.²⁴ And a punch list that drags on after the real work ended doesn't make a safe last day for any trade.

What to do this week if a customer owes you now

1. Write down your last day of work. Add 110 days and 120 days and put both dates in your calendar.
2. Find your copy of the Important Notice to Owner: the signed page or the certified mail receipt. On a home of up to four units, no copy means no lien, so go to step 9.
3. Send the invoice again with a due date, if the customer hasn't had it in writing.
4. Get the legal description of the property from the owner's deed at the county records office.
5. Fill in the demand letter from the template. Send it certified mail, return receipt, restricted delivery, or have someone hand it over and sign the affidavit. Keep the receipt.
6. If the customer offers a payment plan, put it in writing and signed. Keep the lien dates anyway.
7. Unpaid by day 110 or so: fill in the lien account and the affidavit of notice, get them notarized, and file with the circuit clerk with copies of both notices and the proof of service. Pay $15 plus $5 a page.
8. Serve the owner notice of the filed lien the same way. Calendar 20 days, and 15 months from the filing date.
9. Under $5,000 and no lien: file in small claims court. Over $5,000, or the owner is fighting the lien: call an Arkansas attorney.
10. If the customer paid anything by card, watch for a dispute notice and answer it within the window.

The free download: demand letter and deadline worksheet

Two parts you can fill in tonight. The first is a demand letter that also works as the 10-day notice under Arkansas Code 18-44-114: the owner, the property and its legal description, your license number, the work, the balance after credits, the date you gave the Important Notice, a pay-by date, and a delivery and proof-of-service block. A note tells you which paragraph to delete when you have no lien. The second is a deadline worksheet: your last day of work, then each step with its number of days, a blank for your date, the statute, and a box to tick.

Get it three ways: make your own copy in Google Docs (opens in your Drive), download the Word version (.docx), or download the PDF. Pick a format, enter your email and I'll send the links.

More for new contractors

• How to find work as a new contractor: where your first customers come from, with a free first customers plan.
• Angi vs Thumbtack: should you pay for leads yet, with a free lead cost calculator.
• Google Business Profile for contractors: setup, verification and your first reviews, with a free checklist.
• How much to set aside for taxes: self-employment tax, quarterly payments and your state, with a free calculator.
• Hiring your first employee: W-2 or 1099, workers comp and what a helper really costs, with a free checklist.
• Contractor insurance: what you need from day one, what it costs and what can wait, with a free checklist.
• Punch list template: stop a small list holding your final payment.

Where Deepsel fits

Deepsel is the estimate, invoice and scheduling software I build, and it doesn't know Arkansas lien law. It won't count your 120 days, write the 10-day notice, file a lien or answer a card dispute. What it keeps is the paper trail this article keeps asking for. A quote the customer approves on screen records their typed name, their signature and the time. Each visit records when it started and when it was completed, with photos, which is your last day of work. Invoices get a due date from your settings, show as overdue once it passes, and the invoice list totals what's overdue. The customer gets the invoice by email with a link to pay by card into your own Stripe account, and Deepsel records when you sent it and when they first opened it. There are no automatic reminders: you resend it by hand with a new message, or copy the link into a text. Cash, check, Zelle and other payments, partial ones included, are recorded against the invoice. On Free it's one invoice per job, with a card deposit taken at approval credited on it, so stage billing is one invoice with several payments; on Pro, progress billing sends each stage as its own invoice from the job's payment schedule. Free covers 30 estimates and 30 invoices a month for your whole team; Pro is $29 a month with unlimited estimates and invoices (pricing).

Frequently asked questions

How much does it cost to take someone to small claims court in Arkansas?

About $65 to file, plus the cost of serving the customer. State law sets the small claims filing fee at $50 and adds a $15 court technology fee, and Bentonville's district court, for one, lists $65 plus service. Service by the sheriff, a process server or certified mail is extra. You can ask for up to $5,000, not counting interest and costs, and neither side may bring a lawyer.

How do I take someone to small claims court in Arkansas?

Go to the district court clerk in the county where the customer lives or where the work was to be done, fill in the complaint (most clerks have the form), pay the fee and have the customer served. The customer has 30 days to answer, then the court sets a hearing. Bring the signed quote or contract, the invoice, your demand letter and photos. Either side can appeal to circuit court within 30 days. Collection agencies can't file there, and a corporation can only if it has three or fewer stockholders or is family-held.

Is there a minimum amount to file a mechanics lien in Arkansas?

No. The lien chapter sets no minimum, and the Important Notice to Owner has no dollar floor either. The cost sets a practical one: the recording fee, certified mail for the 10-day notice, a notary, and then a lawsuit within 15 months if the lien isn't paid. On a few hundred dollars, small claims court is usually the better tool.

How much does it cost to file a mechanics lien in Arkansas?

The circuit clerk charges the recording fee for materialmen's liens: $15 for the first page and $5 for each page after it. A lien account with its affidavit of notice, the two notices and the proof of service can easily run five or six pages, so $35 to $40, plus certified mail and a notary. Suing on the lien later costs more, and that's where a lawyer comes in.

Can I file a lien without a written contract in Arkansas?

Yes. The lien law's contractor is anyone who contracts "orally or in writing" with the owner. What you can't skip on a home of up to four units is the Important Notice to Owner, given before work starts. A written contract still helps: it gives you five years to sue instead of three, and it's your proof of the price.

How long does a mechanics lien last in Arkansas?

Fifteen months from the day you file it. To keep it alive past that, you have to sue to enforce it and file a lis pendens (a recorded notice of the lawsuit) within those 15 months. Miss either and the lien is gone, though you can still sue on the contract.

Can a contractor put a lien on a homestead in Arkansas?

Yes. Arkansas's constitution protects the home of a married person or head of a family from judgments and forced sale, but it makes an exception for "laborers' or mechanics' liens for improving the same." So a small claims judgment can't force the sale of the customer's home, but a valid mechanics lien for work on that home can.

Can an unlicensed contractor file a lien in Arkansas?

It depends on the license. Unlicensed HVAC work gets no lien by statute. A contractor who needed a residential or commercial contractor's license and didn't have one can't sue on the contract, and a lien has to be enforced by a lawsuit, so on my reading the lien goes too. The electricians' chapter has penalties for unlicensed work but says nothing about liens. A licensed electrician working within the license has the same lien rights as anyone else.

Sources

1. Arkansas Code 18-44-115, Notice to owner by contractor: (a)(1) no lien on "residential real estate containing four (4) or fewer units" unless the owner "has received, by personal delivery or by certified mail, a copy of the notice"; (a)(3) "before the commencement of work"; (a)(4) the contractor "may not avail himself or herself of the benefit of the lien"; (a)(5) any potential lien claimant may give notice, and no sub or supplier lien unless the owner "has received at least one (1) copy"; (a)(6) fine up to $1,000; (a)(7) bold capitals, worded exactly; (b) commercial real estate and the 75-day notice. law.justia.com (2025 Arkansas Code); notice text: attachment 44-115-1. Before Act 984 of 2021, (a)(4) barred the contractor "from bringing an action either at law or in equity, including without limitation quantum meruit": 2020 Arkansas Code. Read November 4, 2026.
2. Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board, "Important Notice Instructions": "18-44-115. Notice to owner by contractor. MUST BE GIVEN BEFORE START OF WORK," with the complete notice. labor.arkansas.gov, read November 4, 2026.
3. Arkansas Code 18-44-114, Notice and service generally: (a) "ten (10) days' notice before the filing of the lien ... that he or she holds a claim against the building or improvement, setting forth the amount and from whom it is due"; (b)(1) service by an officer, a "Person who would be a competent witness," mail "with a return receipt requested and delivery restricted to the addressee or the agent of the addressee," or "written, third-party verification of delivery"; (b)(2) proof by return or affidavit; mail "Complete when mailed"; refused or unclaimed mail: a copy "by first class mail" and the unopened original as proof. law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
4. Arkansas Code 18-44-117, Filing of lien: (a)(1) with the circuit clerk of the county "within one hundred twenty (120) days after the things specified in this subchapter have been furnished or the work or labor done or performed," "A just and true account of the demand due or owing to him or her after allowing all credits" and "An affidavit of notice"; (a)(2) "correct description of the property," verified by affidavit, and "a street address is not a correct description"; (a)(3) the sworn statement, "A copy of each applicable notice" and "A copy of the proof of service"; (b)(2) the 21-6-306 fee; (b)(3) the clerk "shall not file" without them. law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
5. Arkansas Code 18-44-119, Limitation of actions: "All actions under this subchapter shall be commenced within fifteen (15) months after filing the lien"; no lien continues past 15 months unless an action is instituted and "A lis pendens is filed under § 16-59-101 et seq." law.justia.com. Arkansas Code 16-59-101: a suit "affecting the title or any lien on real estate" needs a notice of the pending suit filed "with the recorder of deeds of the county." law.justia.com. 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
6. Arkansas Code 18-44-118, Filing of bond in contest of lien: (a) bond "in the amount of the lien claimed" or a protest action; (b) "three (3) days' notice of the filing of the bond," then the claimant has "recourse only against the principal and surety upon the bond"; (f) protest in circuit court limited to the form of the lien and the notices; no objection "within five (5) days, excluding Sundays and legal holidays" and the lien is discharged; (f)(6) "The prevailing party shall be entitled to a reasonable attorney's fee and the costs of the protest." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
7. Arkansas Code 18-44-128, Attorney's fee: (a) notice of the filed lien served by a method in 18-44-115(b)(5), unpaid "within twenty (20) days," and "the court shall allow the successful" claimant "a reasonable attorney's fee"; (b) "If the owner is the prevailing party in the action, the court shall allow the owner a reasonable attorney's fee." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
8. Arkansas Code chapter 18-44, subchapter 1, other sections: 18-44-101 (lien for every contractor, subcontractor or material supplier "upon the improvement and on up to one (1) acre of land"), 18-44-107 ("'Contractor' means any person who contracts orally or in writing directly with a person holding an interest in real estate"; subcontractor; material supplier), 18-44-108 (list of parties within five business days), 18-44-116 (notice filed with the recorder when the owner is out of state or absconds), 18-44-124 (the contractor defends sub and supplier liens "at his or her own expense"; the owner may withhold), 18-44-127 (judgment "not exceeding the amount claimed," even if the creditor "unintentionally failed" to show all credits, "to be levied out of the property"), 18-44-131 (enter satisfaction; liable after "ten (10) days after payment"), 18-44-132 (receiving payment without discharging known liens with intent to defraud; felony over $25). law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
9. Arkansas Code 21-6-306(a)(1)(A): for recording "materialmen's liens, and other recordable instruments ... fifteen dollars ($15.00) for one (1) page ... and five dollars ($5.00) for each additional page." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
10. Arkansas Code 5-37-226, Filing instruments affecting title: knowingly recording an instrument lacking "authenticity or genuineness" to cloud title is a Class A misdemeanor; the owner may recover "three (3) times actual damages, punitive damages, and costs, including any reasonable attorney's fees"; (d) it "does not apply to a bona fide filing of lis pendens, materialmen's lien, laborer's lien." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
11. Arkansas Constitution, Article 9, § 3: the homestead of a resident "who is married or the head of a family, shall not be subject to the lien of any judgment or decree of any court, or to sale under execution ... except such as may be rendered for the purchase money, or for specific liens, laborers' or mechanics' liens for improving the same, or for taxes." law.justia.com, read November 4, 2026.
12. Arkansas Constitution, Amendment 89: § 3 "The maximum lawful rate of interest on loans or contracts not described in Sections 1 and 2 shall not exceed seventeen percent (17%) per annum"; § 6 contracts above it "shall be void as to principal and interest." law.justia.com, read November 4, 2026.
13. Arkansas Code 4-57-101(d): "The rate of interest under a contract in which a rate of interest is not specified is six percent (6%) per annum." law.justia.com. Arkansas Code 16-65-114(a): post-judgment and, "if appropriate under the facts of the case, prejudgment interest," on a contract "at the rate provided by the contract or at a rate equal to the Federal Reserve primary credit rate ... plus two percent (2%), whichever is greater," not above Amendment 89. law.justia.com. 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
14. Arkansas Code 16-22-308: in a civil action on an open account, a bill, "labor or services, or breach of contract, unless otherwise provided by law or the contract ..., the prevailing party may be allowed a reasonable attorney's fee." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
15. Arkansas Code 16-56-111 (written obligations, five years; "partial payment or written acknowledgment of default shall toll this statute of limitations") and 16-56-105 (three years for contracts "not in writing"). law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
16. Arkansas Supreme Court, Administrative Order No. 18, Administration of District Courts: § 3(b) contract claims not exceeding "five thousand dollars ($5,000), excluding interest, costs, and attorneys' fees"; § 4 small claims division, same amounts; § 4(a) "No attorney-at-law or person other than the plaintiff and defendant shall take part"; § 4(b) no action "by any collection agency, collection agent, or assignee of a claim"; § 4(c) corporations "which have no more than three stockholders" or family-held. Text as reproduced at womenslaw.org, read November 4, 2026.
17. Arkansas Attorney General, "Guide to Small Claims Court": disputes "less than $5,000 ... without attorneys"; no filings by collection agencies; not for cases "to contest title to or possession of real estate"; file "in the county in which a defendant currently resides or in the county where he was to perform an obligation." arkansasag.gov, read November 4, 2026.
18. Arkansas Code 16-17-705(b)(2): "For initiating a cause of action in the small claims division of district court $50.00." law.justia.com. Arkansas Code 21-6-416(b)(3): court technology fee "For initiating a cause of action in the civil or small claims division of district court 15.00." law.justia.com. 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
19. City of Bentonville District Court, "Small Claims/ Civil": "amounts up to $5,000.00 ... Filing fees of $65.00 plus cost of service of the Complaint." bentonville.ar.gov, read November 4, 2026.
20. Legal Aid of Arkansas, AR Law Help, "Small Claims Process": service "by the Sheriff, process server, or by certified mail"; answer "within 30 days after being served"; appeals "in the Circuit Court within 30 days." arlawhelp.org, read November 4, 2026.
21. Board of Electrical Examiner Statutes (2025 compilation): Arkansas Code 17-28-304 ("No person shall perform electrical work in this state ... unless the person has first obtained a license") and 17-28-309 (civil penalty up to $1,000 per day); no section on liens or lawsuits. labor.arkansas.gov; 17-28-309 also on law.justia.com. Read November 4, 2026.
22. 17 CAR § 210-101(a)(2)(B): "A journeyman electrician cannot contract with the general public to plan, lay out, or supervise the installation, maintenance, and extension of electrical conductors and equipment without employing at least one (1) full-time master electrician." codeofarrules.arkansas.gov, read November 4, 2026.
23. Arkansas Code 17-33-105(c): an unlicensed person doing HVACR work "shall not be entitled to a mechanic's and materialman's lien, a laborer's lien, a repairmen's lien, or any other artisan's lien." law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
24. Arkansas Contractors Licensing Board, "Arkansas Residential Contractors Licensing Law" (revised April 2026): 17-25-502(1) (home improvement contractor), 17-25-513(3) ($2,000) and (5) (licensees of other Arkansas boards "performing work within the scope of the license held"), 17-25-515 (no action "In law or equity to enforce any provision of a contract" or "For quantum meruit"), 17-25-611 (roofing: no action "In law to enforce a provision of a contract entered into with a consumer" or "For quantum meruit"). labor.arkansas.gov, read November 4, 2026.
25. Arkansas Code 17-25-103(d): "no action may be brought either at law or in equity to enforce any provision of any contract entered into in violation of this chapter," except unjust enrichment or quantum meruit if the contractor pays the board's fines and applies for the license. law.justia.com, 2025 Arkansas Code, read November 4, 2026.
26. Arkansas State Board of Collection Agencies: "Collection agencies must be licensed if: (1) they are located in Arkansas or (2) they contact Arkansas residents." portal.arkansas.gov; license search on the board's page. Read November 4, 2026.
27. Stripe, "Respond to disputes": "you have a limited window to respond (usually 7 to 21 days, depending on the card network)," and missing it means you "automatically lose the dispute"; "How disputes work": Stripe "Debits the disputed amount, plus a dispute fee." docs.stripe.com, docs.stripe.com, read November 4, 2026.
28. r/electricians, "First time dealing with a potential mechanical lien," July 18, 2024: "He refused to pay a partial payment after 90% of the work was done" (reddit.com); reply: "Did you provide a "Notice to Owner" at time of contract? ... in FL, you can't put a lien unless you've first provided the notice" (reddit.com).
29. r/electricians, "Self-employers: what do you do about late payments?", August 29, 2024. reddit.com.
30. r/electricians, "Homeowners not paying," October 31, 2024, reply from a commercial electrician. reddit.com.
31. Mike Holt's Forum, "Residential work payments," November 23, 2024 (search snippet). forums.mikeholt.com.
32. Entergy, Customer Installation Standards (2026 edition), "Connection of Service": "The Company will schedule service connection after the authority having jurisdiction has notified the Company all required permits and inspections are passed and approved." entergy.com, read November 4, 2026.
33. City of Little Rock, Article III, Electricity (city's posted copy): 8-148 rough inspection "Before any electrical wiring shall be concealed from view"; 8-149 final inspection "Before any electrical current shall be used." littlerock.gov, read November 4, 2026.