(a) Any lien provided for by this chapter shall be enforced in the same manner as provided in Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 8400) of Title 2 of Part 6 of Division 4 of the Civil Code. The action shall be filed within 180 days from the time of the recording of the lien. If a credit is given and notice of the fact and terms of the credit is filed in the office of the county recorder subsequent to the filing of the lien and prior to the expiration of the 180-day period, then the lien continues in force until 180 days after the expiration of the credit, but no lien continues in force by reason of any agreement to give credit for a longer time than one year from the time the work is completed. If the proceedings to enforce the lien are not prosecuted to trial within two years after commencement, the court may in its discretion dismiss the action for want of prosecution, and in all cases the dismissal of the action (unless it is expressly stated that it is without prejudice) or a judgment in the action that no lien exists is equivalent to the cancellation and removal from the record of the lien.
§ 1203.61.Action to Enforce Lien
Title 4. Of the Enforcement of Liens · Chapter 2.5. Oil and Gas Liens · Last amended 2012 · Last verified July 29, 2026
In one sentenceSection 1203.61 requires an oil and gas lien to be enforced the way mechanics liens are enforced under the Civil Code, sets a 180-day filing deadline from recording (extendable by a filed credit agreement up to one year), and lets a court dismiss an action not brought to trial within two years.
Full Text of § 1203.61
(b) As against any purchaser or encumbrancer for value and in good faith whose rights are acquired subsequent to the expiration of the 180-day period following the filing of the lien, no giving of credit or extension of the lien or time to enforce the lien shall be effective unless evidenced by a notice or agreement filed for record in the office of the county recorder prior to the acquisition of the rights of the purchaser or encumbrancer.
Plain-English Summary
This section governs how a lien claimant forecloses. The enforcement procedure isn't spelled out here from scratch — it borrows the mechanics lien enforcement procedure found in Chapter 4 (commencing with § 8400) of Title 2 of Part 6 of Division 4 of the Civil Code.
The claimant has to file the foreclosure action within 180 days of recording the lien. If the claimant extends credit to the debtor and records notice of that credit before the 180 days runs out, the lien stays alive until 180 days after the credit period ends — but never longer than one year from when the work was finished. If the claimant sits on a filed action for two years without bringing it to trial, the court has discretion to dismiss for want of prosecution, and any dismissal that doesn't say it's without prejudice, or any judgment finding no lien exists, counts as canceling and removing the lien from the record.
Subdivision (b) protects later purchasers and encumbrancers who buy in good faith and for value after the 180-day period expires: extending credit or the enforcement deadline doesn't bind them unless a notice or agreement to that effect was recorded before they acquired their rights.
Frequently Asked Questions
How is an oil and gas lien enforced under this chapter?
In the same manner as mechanics liens under Chapter 4 (commencing with Section 8400) of Title 2 of Part 6 of Division 4 of the Civil Code.
How long does a claimant have to file suit to enforce the lien?
180 days from the date the lien was recorded, though a properly filed credit agreement can extend that period, up to one year from completion of the work.
What happens if the case sits without going to trial?
If not prosecuted to trial within two years after it's filed, the court may, in its discretion, dismiss the action for want of prosecution.
Are later purchasers of the property always bound by an extension of credit or the enforcement deadline?
No. A good-faith purchaser or encumbrancer for value whose rights arise after the 180-day period isn't bound unless a notice or agreement was recorded before those rights were acquired.
Amendment History
Amended by Stats 2010 ch 697 (SB 189),s 24, eff. 1/1/2011, op. 7/1/2012.
Source & verification. Section text is reproduced verbatim from
the Deering's California Codes Annotated / vLex. Enacted by the California Legislature.
Last verified July 29, 2026.
· Official source
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