Sometimes, employers do not pay their employees the full amount that they have earned. If your employer owes you “wages” for work that you have performed, consider filing a “lien for unpaid wages” to force the employer to pay.
Read the Law: Md. Code, Labor and Employment Title 3, Subtitle 11
Read the Regulations: Code of Md. Regulations, Title 9, Subtitle 12, Chapter 39
Read the Rules: Md. Rules, Title 15, Chapter 1400
Topics on this page
- What is a lien for unpaid wages?
- Who is an employer?
- What kinds of property can an employee place a lien on?
- How do I file a lien for unpaid wages against my employer?
- I filed the lien, what now?
What is a lien for unpaid wages?
Under Maryland’s “lien for unpaid wages” law, an employee may place a lien on an employer’s property to secure the payment of unpaid wages. The lien acts as a hold on the employer’s property, preventing the employer from selling, hiding, or disposing of the property until the wages are paid, or the lien is otherwise released. If an employee successfully files a lien against an employer’s property, the employee may be able to force the employer to then sell that property and use the money from the sale to pay the employee the owed wages.
NOTE: An employee cannot file a request for a lien for unpaid wages for unpaid commissions. Under the law, wages do not include commissions.
Only consider placing a “lien for unpaid wages” against your employer’s property if you believe “in good faith” that your employer owes you wages. If your dispute is frivolous, or you bring the claim just to get back at your employer, a court can force you to pay the employer’s attorney fees – which will not be cheap!
Who is an employer?
The definition of an employer under the lien for unpaid wages law is broad. An "employer" includes “a person who acts directly or indirectly in the interest of another employer with an employee.” Depending on the situation, an employer can be a business or an individual within the business (such as a supervisor). An employer can also include multiple businesses and/or multiple individuals.
Read the Law: Md. Code, Labor and Employment, § 3–1101
Read the case: Newell v. Runnels, 407 Md. 578 (2009) (See Section V).
What kinds of property can an employee place a lien on?
An employee can place a lien on his or her employer’s real property or personal property.
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Real property is unmovable property, such as a house, building, or land.
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Personal property is property that is moveable, such as vehicles, equipment, furniture, instruments, or collectibles.
How do I file a lien for unpaid wages against my employer?
There are three steps to file a lien for unpaid wages:
Step 1 - Notice and Service
Before a lien can be established, an employee (current or former) must serve their employer with a “Notice to Employer of Intent to Claim Lien for Unpaid Wages.” In the form you must include the following:
- Your name and address
- Name and address of the employer who owes you wages.
- Dates you worked for the employer.
- Dates for which you were not paid.
- Reason why you believe wages are due.
- Amount of lien you are requesting.
You can download a copy of a form from the Department of Labor's website. If you file against multiple people or multiple businesses, you must separately identify each person and each business in the lien and serve everyone involved.
Notice must be served within 3 years of the date the wages were due. Notice can be served by:
- personal service (learn more about service);
- leaving a copy of the Notice at the employer's home or place of dwelling with a resident of suitable age and discretion; OR
- mailing a copy to the employer by certified mail requesting, "Restricted Delivery-Show to whom, date, and address of delivery."
RECOMMENDATION: Put the notice and the proof of service in a place for safe keeping.
After service, the employer has 30 days to dispute the claim. If they wish to dispute the claim they must file a complaint in the circuit court for the county where property of an employer is located. Keep track of the 30-day period and keep an eye out for a possible complaint because it affects if the lien is established (see below).
Read the law: Md. Code, Labor and Employment § 3-1102, § 3-1103; Courts and Judicial Proceedings § 5-101
Read the regulation: Code of Md. Regulations 09.12.39.02, 09.12.39.03
Read the rule: Md. Rule 15-1402, Rule 15-403
Step 2 - Establishment of the Lien
An unpaid wage lien is considered placed on the property or “established” in one of two ways:
- Employer does not dispute lien request
- If your employer does not dispute your claim for a lien within 30 days after being served with the “Notice to Employer of Intent to Claim Lien for Unpaid Wages,” then the lien is established.
- By court order
- If your employer files a complaint to dispute your request for a lien, the lien must be established through a court order.
- To obtain an order for a lien for unpaid wages, the employee must prove to the Court that the wages are owed.
- The employee should consider responding to the employer’s complaint. Employees have 10 days to file a response. Employees may want to consider attaching a sworn statement (affidavit) describing the work performed and wages owed, their personal knowledge of the facts, and any proof that wages are owed.
- Either the employee and/or the employer can request a hearing.
- The court has 45 days from the date the employer served the complaint to decide whether the lien will be established on the property.
- If the employer files a complaint, consider getting an attorney.
NOTE: If the Court determines that the employee request for the lien was frivolous or made in bad faith the court may award court costs and reasonable attorney's fees to the employer.
Read the rule: Md. Rule 15-1403
Step 3 - Recording the Lien
After the lien is established, the employee should record the lien. The lien becomes enforceable—meaning the employee can force payment—only after the lien is recorded.
All liens for unpaid wages must be recorded within 180 days after the lien is established. There may be a fee and tax to record the lien. These rates differ based on the county and the value and type of property.
If the lien is on real property, the employee must record the lien by filing a “Wage Lien Statement” with the Clerk of the Circuit Court for the county in which the property is located. The Statement must include:
- A description of the property;
- The name of the property owner;
- The monetary amount of the lien;
- A copy of the Notice to Employer of Intent to Claim Lien for Unpaid Wages and proof of service of the notice; and
- A copy of a court order establishing the lien for unpaid wages if the lien for unpaid wages is established in a court.
- a “Wage Lien Statement”,
- the “Notice to Employer of Intent to Claim Lien for Unpaid Wages” and proof of service, and
- if applicable, the court order establishing the lien.
I filed the lien, what now?
After the lien is recorded and is a “secured claim,” the employee has a few options. The employee may:
- wait for the employer to pay up; OR
- seek to enforce the lien by forcing the employer to sell the property and pay the owed wages.
If the employee chooses to enforce the lien, consider seeking the assistance of an attorney. To enforce the lien, a petition needs to be filed in a circuit court, and there may be a hearing. An action to enforce a lien must be brought within 12 years of the date of the lien is recorded.
Read the law: Md. Code, Labor and Employment § 3-1106
Read the rule: Md. Rule 15-1406