Partial Approval of the Contractor's Lien for Reinforcement Steel Deliveries

Facts

Debrunner AG delivered reinforcement steel to Beton-Bau AG on September 18, September 30, and October 31, 1974, some of which was cut and bent or merely bent, and some of which was unprocessed. Debrunner AG then obtained a provisional contractor's lien for the amount of CHF 28,531.25 against a building plot in Basel owned by Peter Rensch.

Debrunner AG subsequently filed a lawsuit in the Civil Court of Basel-Stadt against Peter Rensch and Beton-Bau AG, requesting that the provisional lien be declared definitive and that Beton-Bau AG be ordered to pay the claim. The defendants opposed the lien claim but acknowledged the claim itself.

Considerations

The Federal Supreme Court states that according to Article 837(1)(3) of the Swiss Civil Code, craftsmen and contractors who have supplied materials and labor or labor alone for buildings are entitled to the establishment of a statutory lien on the property. This serves to use the increased value of the property created by the construction to secure the claims of the craftsmen and contractors.

For the reinforcement steel processed by the plaintiff, which was custom-made for the construction and otherwise not or only with difficulty usable, a contract for work and materials exists, which is to be treated like a contract for work and…