Also known as: statutory liens
Written by attorneys · grounded in primary & secondary sources — see below
A lien arising solely by force of a statute on specified property when a designated obligation remains unpaid. The lien is distinct from both consensual security interests and judicial liens created through court proceedings. Its scope, duration, perfection, and priority are controlled by the terms of the creating statute rather than by agreement or judicial process.
Simone Sanders conveyed a parcel by warranty deed to Sterling Manufacturing before she held title. Months later the county docketed tax liens against her for unpaid assessments. When she later acquired the parcel, the after-acquired title passed immediately to Sterling under estoppel by deed, so the statutory tax liens never attached to the property.
Sebastian Santos operated a dairy and granted a statutory agricultural lien to Silverline Industries for unpaid feed. When Santos filed bankruptcy, the trustee examined whether the lien could be avoided. Because the lien arose solely by force of statute and was not a security interest or judicial lien, the creation of the lien itself was protected from preference attack under the statutory-lien exception.
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A statutory lien arises automatically by operation of statute when a specified obligation is unpaid. A judicial lien requires a court proceeding and docketing or recording of the judgment. The bankruptcy code expressly excludes judicial liens from the definition of statutory lien.
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Yes. Section 545 permits the trustee to avoid certain statutory liens, including those for rent and those that are unperfected against a hypothetical bona fide purchaser at the commencement of the case. Liens that survive section 545 analysis remain enforceable.
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Article 9 generally excludes statutory liens from its scope except for agricultural liens. Non-agricultural statutory liens are governed by the specific statute that creates them and by non-UCC priority rules.
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A judgment lien, which is a statutory lien, attaches to real property the debtor acquires after docketing, provided the property is located in the county where the judgment is recorded. Estoppel by deed may prevent attachment if title passes directly to a prior grantee.
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