How to Serve an Illinois Section 24 Notice (and How Not To)

For Illinois subcontractors, a Section 24 notice is often the document that decides whether a mechanics lien can be enforced against an owner's property. The notice itself is important, but how it is served is just as important.

This article focuses on one point: how a subcontractor who has no direct contract with the owner must serve a Section 24 notice under the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act.

What Is a Section 24 Notice?

Section 24 of the Illinois Mechanics Lien Act applies to subcontractors and others furnishing labor, materials, fixtures, apparatus, machinery, or services who do not contract directly with the owner. The statute allows the subcontractor to notify the owner that it has a claim for money due, or to become due, for work or materials supplied to the project. See 770 ILCS 60/24.

The notice serves two practical purposes:

• It protects the subcontractor by preserving lien rights if the subcontractor is not paid.
• It protects the owner by alerting the owner that someone down the contracting chain claims money is owed, so the owner can withhold funds or investigate before paying the general contractor.

Illinois courts describe this notice requirement as substantial, not a mere technicality. In Seasons-4, Inc. v. Hertz Corp., 788 N.E.2d 179 (Ill. App. 2003), the court explained that Section 24 notice is part of the substance on which the lien is based, and failure to comply can mean there is no enforceable lien.

How Must the Section 24 Notice Be Served?

Under current Section 24, the subcontractor must provide written notice to the owner of record or the owner's agent, architect, or superintendent having charge of the improvement, and to the lending agency, if known. The notice must be sent or served by one of the methods listed in the statute:

• Registered or certified mail, return receipt requested
• A nationally recognized delivery company with tracking service
• Personal service

The statute now states that notice is considered served when the written notice is placed with the delivery service or in the mail. See 770 ILCS 60/24.

The Safest Approach

For a subcontractor preparing and sending the notice on its own, the safest service practice is:

• Use the statutory form or a notice that includes the same core information: the contractor, the work or materials, the property, and the amount due or to become due.
• Serve the owner of record and any known lender.
• Use certified mail, return receipt requested, or a nationally recognized delivery company with tracking.
• If using personal service, use a professional process server and keep an affidavit of service.

A subcontractor can lose lien rights not because the debt is invalid, but because the notice was served the wrong way.

What Can Go Wrong?

Faxing the Notice

Faxing is not one of the service methods listed in Section 24. In Seasons-4, Inc. v. Hertz Corp., the subcontractor faxed a letter within the 90-day period. The owner actually received it and even discussed it with the subcontractor. That was still not enough. The court held that fax service did not comply with Section 24 because the statute allowed service by mail or personal delivery, not fax.

Sending an Informal Letter Instead of a Lien Notice

A letter that merely complains about nonpayment may not be enough. In Seasons-4, the faxed letter discussed an unpaid invoice and suspended warranties, but it did not clearly state that the subcontractor was asserting a mechanics lien claim against the property. The court held the content was insufficient as well as the method of service.

Relying on Actual Notice

An owner's actual knowledge does not necessarily save a defective Section 24 notice. In Rothers Construction, Inc. v. Centurion Industries, Inc., 786 N.E.2d 644 (Ill. App. 2003), the court emphasized that notice to the owner is the basis on which a mechanics lien is predicated and that actual notice from some other source does not create the lien.

Missing the 90-Day Window

Section 24 generally requires the subcontractor to serve the notice within 90 days after completion of its contract work, or within 90 days after extra or additional work or final delivery of extra materials. See 770 ILCS 60/24. In Cyclonaire Corp. v. ISG Riverdale, Inc., 882 N.E.2d 684 (Ill. App. 2007), the court rejected an attempt to extend the notice period based on later warranty work.

Examples of Risky or Wrong Service

A subcontractor should avoid these shortcuts:

• Faxing the notice: Not listed in Section 24 and rejected in Seasons-4.
• Emailing the notice only: Not listed in Section 24.
• Sending ordinary mail without certified/registered service: Risky because the statute specifies registered or certified mail with return receipt requested.
• Hand-delivering it personally without proof: Personal service is listed in the statute, but a subcontractor should not rely on an undocumented handoff. A process server's affidavit provides cleaner proof.
• Serving only the general contractor: Section 24 is designed to notify the owner and, if known, the lender, not just the party who hired the subcontractor.
• Waiting until the end of the 90th day: Any address error, wrong recipient, or proof problem can become fatal.

Why the Rule Matters

Section 24 balances two interests. The subcontractor, who improved the property but may not have a contract with the owner, gets a statutory route to preserve lien rights. The owner, who may not know every subcontractor or supplier on the job, gets notice before making payments that could expose the property to lien claims.

That balance only works if the notice is served the way the statute requires. As the Illinois Appellate Court recognized in Bricks Inc. v. C & F Developers, Inc., 836 N.E.2d 743 (Ill. App. 2005), the Mechanics Lien Act balances the rights and duties of owners, subcontractors, and material suppliers.

Bottom Line

A Section 24 notice should be treated like a lien-preservation step, not a casual collection letter. If a subcontractor is preparing and sending the notice on its own, it should use one of the statutory service methods, keep proof of service, and avoid informal shortcuts like fax, email, or undocumented hand delivery.

Best practice: serve early, use certified mail or tracked national delivery, serve all required recipients, and use a process server if personal service is chosen.

Frequently Asked Questions

How do you serve an Illinois Section 24 notice?

Under 770 ILCS 60/24, a subcontractor who has no direct contract with the owner must provide written notice to the owner of record, or the owner's agent, architect, or superintendent in charge of the improvement, and to the lending agency if known. The statute lists the methods that count: registered or certified mail with return receipt requested, a nationally recognized delivery company with tracking service, or personal service. The statute now treats the notice as served when it is placed with the delivery service or in the mail. The method is not a formality. A notice delivered by a method the statute does not list can fail even if the owner actually receives it, so use a listed method and keep the proof of service in your file before you rely on the notice to support a lien.

Can you email or fax a Section 24 notice in Illinois?

No. Section 24 lists registered or certified mail, a nationally recognized delivery company with tracking, and personal service. Fax and email are not on that list. In Seasons-4, Inc. v. Hertz Corp., 788 N.E.2d 179 (Ill. App. 2003), the subcontractor faxed its letter within the 90-day period, the owner received it, and the owner even discussed it. The court still held that fax service did not comply with Section 24 because the statute allowed service by mail or personal delivery, not fax. The lesson is that actual receipt does not cure a non-statutory delivery method. Emailing the notice carries the same risk. If you want the notice to support a mechanics lien, send it by certified mail with return receipt requested or by a tracked national carrier, and keep the proof. A faxed or emailed notice can cost the lien.

Does the owner's actual knowledge save a defective Section 24 notice?

Not necessarily. Illinois treats the Section 24 notice as the basis on which a subcontractor's lien is predicated, not as a courtesy. In Rothers Construction, Inc. v. Centurion Industries, Inc., 786 N.E.2d 644 (Ill. App. 2003), the court emphasized that notice to the owner is what the lien rests on, and that actual notice from some other source does not create the lien. In practice, that means a subcontractor cannot rely on the owner happening to know about the claim through the general contractor, a change order, or a conversation on the job. The statutory notice has to be served on the right parties, by a listed method, within the deadline. Build the record as if the owner will deny knowing anything, because actual knowledge will not save a notice that was never properly served.

Can you hand-deliver a Section 24 notice yourself?

Personal service is one of the methods Section 24 allows, so a subcontractor can hand-deliver the notice. The risk is proof. An undocumented handoff, where someone simply gives the notice to the owner or a person at the office, leaves you with no clean way to establish who was served, when, and with what. The better practice is to use a licensed process server who serves the notice and prepares an affidavit of service. That affidavit is independent proof that the right person received the right document on a specific date. If service is later challenged, the affidavit answers the challenge. If you rely on an informal hand delivery and the owner disputes it, you may be unable to prove service at all, and an unprovable service is close to no service when the lien is tested.

Who must be served with a Section 24 notice, and by when?

Serve the owner of record, or the owner's agent, architect, or superintendent in charge of the improvement, and the lending agency if it is known. Serving only the general contractor is not enough, because Section 24 is designed to notify the owner and the lender, not just the party that hired you. On timing, 770 ILCS 60/24 generally requires service within 90 days after you complete your contract work, or within 90 days after extra or additional work or final delivery of extra materials. Later warranty work usually does not extend that window. In Cyclonaire Corp. v. ISG Riverdale, Inc., 882 N.E.2d 684 (Ill. App. 2007), the court rejected an attempt to stretch the notice period using later warranty work. Serve the right parties well before day 90, because a wrong recipient or a late notice can end the lien.