GALVESTON - Kingwood resident Julie Bernell is suing Hilldale, Utah, resident Berkell Holm in response to a mechanic's lien placed on her property in Galveston, recent court documents say.
According to a lawsuit filed June 15 in Galveston County District Court, Holm, an agent of Galveston-based First Onsite, filed the lien for labor and materials for which Bernell insists she did not sign up.
The suit shows the lien, reportedly in the amount of $1,208.22, prevented the plaintiff from re-financing the single-family residence in Galveston's Jamaica Beach area.
It explains that the defendants claim the project was part of an agreement with Pearl Building Contractors in Tomball, adding "the plaintiff is not aware of any contract between these two companies or individuals and have not obtained any such document."
Bernell says she never received a debt collection notice or a copy of the filed "Affidavit of Lien - Original Contractor - Individual" from the County Real Property Records of Galveston County.
The plaintiff contested the debt and, through her legal counsel, offered the respondents a one-time settlement so she can proceed quickly with re-financing the home, the suit says.
Bernell ultimately states that work was performed on the structure, but not by the defendants.
She seeks a summary judgment declaring the lien in question "invalid and unenforceable".
Attorney Tami C. Pierce of Kingwood is representing the complainant, and Galveston County 212th District Court Judge Susan Criss is presiding over the case.
Case No. 12-cv-1361