Under RCW 60.04.161, an owner may release his or her property from a lien by recording a bond to guarantee any judgment obtained by a lien claimant. In this case, the lien claimant, DBM Consulting, obtained a judgment against the property owner on its contract claim, but did not prove the validity of its lien in the underlying lawsuit. The Court of Appeals held that the bonding company was not required to pay because DBM failed to prove the validity of its lien along with its contract claim in the underlying lawsuit. The lesson to lien claimants is that you must not only prove your contract balance claim, but you must also prove the validity of your lien to recover against a lien bond posted by a property owner.
