Arizona lien waiver forms: which one to use and when

The four Arizona forms

Is the statutory wording mandatory?

In practice, yes. Subsection A says a waiver releases the property, for the owner, the construction lender, the contractor and the surety on a payment bond, only if it “follows substantially one of the forms set forth in this section and is signed by the claimant or his authorized agent.” Subsection D shuts the door on anything else:

“Substantially” lets you fill in blanks and lay the page out your own way. It doesn't let you rewrite the terms, drop the notice or add a clause that waives more. The rest of the section backs that up:

• No waiving someone else's rights by contract. An owner or contractor can't waive or impair other people's lien claims through a contract term, and such a term is void. A claimant's written consent only counts if it's given as one of the statutory waivers (subsection A).
• No informal waivers. An oral or written statement that waives or impairs a claim isn't enforceable unless it's a statutory waiver or the claimant has actually been paid in full (subsection B).
• Two exceptions. An accord and satisfaction of a real dispute, or a settlement of a pending lawsuit, still works if it specifically refers to the mechanic's lien or bond claim (subsection C).

Conditional or unconditional: follow the money

Arizona ties the choice to whether you've actually been paid. The conditional form is the one to use whenever you aren't in fact paid in exchange for the waiver, or whenever a single or joint payee check is handed over for it. A check isn't money until it clears, so a check in your hand still means the conditional form.

A conditional release only works once there's evidence of payment. The statute names two kinds: the claimant's endorsement on a single or joint payee check “that has been paid by the bank on which it was drawn,” or a written acknowledgment of payment from the claimant. The conditional forms warn whoever receives them to verify that evidence before relying on the waiver.

The unconditional forms are for money that has cleared. Each one must carry this notice, in type at least as large as the largest type elsewhere on the document:

Progress or final: what each form keeps

• Progress forms cover labor, services, equipment or materials furnished through a date you fill in, and say they don't cover “any retention, pending modifications and changes or items furnished after that date.” Retainage and unapproved change work stay protected.
• The conditional final form releases everything except “disputed claims in the amount of $____.” Fill that blank in, even if the answer is zero, so nobody argues later about what you meant.
• The unconditional final form keeps only “disputed claims for extra work.” Retention you haven't received is not carved out, so hold this form until the retention check has cleared too.
• All four forms include a warranty that you've paid, or will promptly use this payment to pay, your own laborers, subcontractors, materialmen and suppliers on the job.

Who signs, and whether it needs a notary

Section 33-1008 asks for the signature of the claimant or the claimant's authorized agent. It doesn't call for a notary or a witness, and the forms have no notary block. Each form ends with a date, the company name, a “By” signature line and a title line, so the person signing should be an owner, officer or employee who can bind the company.

An electronic signature can be that signature. Arizona's Electronic Transactions Act says “An electronic signature satisfies any law that requires a signature” (A.R.S. § 44-7007(D)), and the federal ESIGN Act gives e-signatures the same effect in interstate commerce. What you need to be able to show is that the right person signed. More on the act in Arizona's e-signature law.

Mistakes that cost Arizona claimants

• Signing the unconditional form against a check. If the check bounces, the notice on the form means what it says: you've waived the rights anyway.
• A through date past what you've been paid for. Work after your last paid date belongs on the next waiver, not this one.
• Leaving the disputed-claims blank empty on a final form. It's the only carve-out the final forms give you.
• Signing a lender's or GC's own wording. If it doesn't substantially follow § 33-1008 it's unenforceable, but it can still hold up your payment while everyone argues.
• Waiving the bond claim by accident. Every form releases payment bond rights along with the lien, so the same caution applies on bonded jobs.

Sending Arizona waivers with SignMaster

SignMaster doesn't choose your form or check it against the statute. It sends the form you upload and collects the signature, so set the four forms up once and reuse them on every draw.

1. 1

   Build each form from the statute

   Type each form exactly as § 33-1008 prints it, including the full-size notice on the two unconditional ones. Upload each PDF on the Templates page with New template, with one signing role called Claimant.

2. 2

   Turn the blanks into fields

   Add text fields for project, job number, maker of check, amount, payee, owner, job description, the person you contracted with and the through date. Then add Signature, Name and Date signed fields for the claimant, plus a text field for the signer's title.

3. 3

   Send the pair for each payment

   Send the conditional progress form with the pay application, and the unconditional one once the check clears. On paid plans, bulk send puts one form in front of every sub on a draw from a single CSV.

4. 4

   File the proof with the payment

   Each signed waiver comes back as a PDF with a certificate of completion: who signed, when, their email and IP address. Keep it with the cleared check, which is your evidence of payment.