Obligation Schemas
Obligation Schemas
A computational clause-and-event model with a construction payment and lien record walk-through.
Structured Visual
Jurisdiction: US; as of 2026-08-28; not legal advice; Render structure, refuse interpretation, cite, abstain, and hand off.
RENDER STRUCTURE · REFUSE INTERPRETATION · CITE · ABSTAIN · HAND-OFF: render structure, refuse interpretation, cite provenance, abstain when unsupported, and hand off to human review.
Scope and honesty note
Jurisdiction: United States common-law overview with Texas sales-law analogues; as of 2026-08-28; jurisdictions and contract types vary; not legal advice. Synthetic facts are classroom inputs, not findings. This lesson renders structure, refuses unsupported interpretation, cites, abstains, and hands off.
See the essential structure first
Verify the source and stated facts before matching events or computing a display status; that status is not a legal conclusion. This deliberately incomplete preview has 5 nodes; exceptions and legal consequences remain in the sourced prose below.
Jurisdiction: US; as of 2026-08-28; not legal advice; Render structure, refuse interpretation, cite, abstain, and hand off.
RENDER STRUCTURE · REFUSE INTERPRETATION · CITE · ABSTAIN · HAND-OFF: render structure, refuse interpretation, cite provenance, abstain when unsupported, and hand off to human review.
Begin with the governing doctrine
An obligation schema separates source text, parties, promised action, object, triggering event, due rule, exceptions, performance events, and review status. It is useful only if authored inputs remain distinct from derived display fields. Construction payment illustrates the boundary: a contract invoice and change order can be traced as private obligations, while statutory notice, lien-affidavit, and waiver questions require claimant, project, property, work-period, delivery, completion, and form facts under the governing statute.
Pin the lien-affidavit filing provision
This provision contains claimant- and project-specific filing rules, completion and termination branches, and extension conditions that cannot be reduced to one universal clock. Verbatim snapshot text: “FILING OF AFFIDAVIT. (a) An original contractor claiming the lien must file an affidavit with the county clerk: (1) for projects other than residential construction projects, not later than the 15th day of the fourth month after the month in which the original contractor's work was completed, terminated, or abandoned; or (2) for residential construction projects, not later than the 15th day of the third month after the month in which the original contractor's work was completed, terminated, or abandoned. (b) Except as provided by Subsection (c) or (d), a claimant other than an original contractor claiming the lien must file an affidavit with the county clerk not later than the 15th day of the fourth month after the later of: (1) the month the claimant last provided labor or materials; or (2) the month the claimant would normally have been required to deliver the last of specially fabricated materials that have not been actually delivered. (c) A claimant other than an original contractor claiming a lien arising from a residential construction project must file an affidavit with the county clerk not later than the 15th day of the third month after the later of: (1) the month the claimant last provided labor or materials; or (2) the month the claimant would normally have been required to deliver the last of specially fabricated materials that have not been actually delivered. (d) A claimant other than an original contractor claiming a lien for retainage must file an affidavit with the county clerk not later than the 15th day of the third month after the month in which the original contract under which the claimant performed was completed, terminated, or abandoned. (e) An affidavit under this chapter must be filed in the county where the improvements are located. The county clerk shall record the affidavit in records kept for that purpose and shall index and cross-index the affidavit in the names of the claimant, the original contractor, and the owner. Failure of the county clerk to properly record or index a filed affidavit does not invalidate the lien.” Source: Tex. Property Code § 53.052; https://www.neochart.com/catalog/texas/property/chapter_53/section_53_052/tex_pr_53_052_8c550ab3c112/tex_property_code_sec_53_052_filing_of_affidavit_0001/index.html; data via neochart.com, snapshot 2026-08.
Pin derivative-claimant notice
This provision states notice content, recipient, delivery, and timing rules with multiple project and claimant branches. Verbatim snapshot text: “DERIVATIVE CLAIMANT: NOTICE TO OWNER AND ORIGINAL CONTRACTOR. (a) Except as provided by Section 53.057, a claimant other than an original contractor must give the notice prescribed by Subsections (a-1) and (a-2) for the lien to be valid. (a-1) For all unpaid labor or materials provided, the claimant must send a notice of claim for unpaid labor or materials to the owner or reputed owner and the original contractor. The notice must be sent: (1) for projects other than residential construction projects, not later than the 15th day of the third month after the month during which: (A) the labor or materials were provided; or (B) the undelivered specially fabricated materials would normally have been delivered; or (2) for residential construction projects, not later than the 15th day of the second month after the month during which: (A) the labor or materials were provided; or (B) the undelivered specially fabricated materials would normally have been delivered. (a-2) The notice must be in substantially the following form: "NOTICE OF CLAIM FOR UNPAID LABOR OR MATERIALS "WARNING: This notice is provided to preserve lien rights. "Owner's property may be subject to a lien if sufficient funds are not withheld from future payments to the original contractor to cover this debt. "Date:_______________ "Project description and/or address: _______________ "Claimant's name: _______________ "Type of labor or materials provided: _______________ "Original contractor's name: _______________ "Party with whom claimant contracted if different from original contractor: _______________ "Claim amount: _______________ "_______________ (Claimant's contact person) "_______________ (Claimant's address)" (a-3) The notice may include an invoice or billing statement. (a-4) A claimant may give to the original contractor a written notice of an unpaid labor or materials invoice that is past due. A notice under this subsection is not required for a lien to be valid. (b) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 690 (H.B. 2237), Sec. 36(4), eff. January 1, 2022. (c) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 690 (H.B. 2237), Sec. 36(4), eff. January 1, 2022. (d) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 690 (H.B. 2237), Sec. 36(4), eff. January 1, 2022. (e) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 690 (H.B. 2237), Sec. 36(4), eff. January 1, 2022. (f) Repealed by Acts 2021, 87th Leg., R.S., Ch. 690 (H.B. 2237), Sec. 36(4), eff. January 1, 2022.” Source: Tex. Property Code § 53.056; https://www.neochart.com/catalog/texas/property/chapter_53/section_53_056/tex_pr_53_056_f2b8dd287060/tex_property_code_sec_53_056_derivative_claimant_notice_to_o_0001/index.html; data via neochart.com, snapshot 2026-08.
Pin waiver and release limits
This provision ties enforceable waiver and release to payment or satisfaction and compliance with the statutory subchapter. Verbatim snapshot text: “WAIVER AND RELEASE OF LIEN OR PAYMENT BOND CLAIM. (a) Any waiver and release of a lien or payment bond claim under this chapter is unenforceable unless a waiver and release is executed and delivered in accordance with this subchapter. (b) A waiver and release is effective to release the owner, the owner's property, the contractor, and the surety on a payment bond from claims and liens only if: (1) the waiver and release substantially complies with one of the forms prescribed by Section 53.284; (2) the waiver and release is signed by the claimant or the claimant's authorized agent; and (3) in the case of a conditional release, evidence of payment to the claimant exists.” Source: Tex. Property Code § 53.281; https://www.neochart.com/catalog/texas/property/chapter_53/section_53_281/tex_pr_53_281_9d9cb9a9069b/tex_property_code_sec_53_281_waiver_and_release_of_lien_or_p_0001/index.html; data via neochart.com, snapshot 2026-08.
Pin the synthetic fact pattern
A synthetic private project packet names an owner, original contractor, and derivative claimant; records an approved invoice and paid event; records an approved change order and completed work event; and leaves property description, claimant tier, work months, completion events, and notice delivery for review.
Work the application
The computational table matches each contract trigger to the correct object, derives a due date from the synthetic clause, and records the supplied performance event. That trace is not a statutory lien clock or breach conclusion. The statutory packet then shows why lien review must branch on claimant and project class, work and completion dates, recipients, delivery method, affidavit filing, and statutory waiver form. Missing fields route to abstention rather than a guessed deadline.
Read the populated authority-and-fact record
The first populated artifact carries two real synthetic clause rows and four dated events; the second carries verbatim lien authorities, project fields, notice and affidavit questions, waiver constraints, and a concrete handoff. The rendered record contains 20 populated rows across source, fact, and application branches.
Jurisdiction: US; as of 2026-08-28; not legal advice; Render structure, refuse interpretation, cite, abstain, and hand off.
RENDER STRUCTURE · REFUSE INTERPRETATION · CITE · ABSTAIN · HAND-OFF: render structure, refuse interpretation, cite provenance, abstain when unsupported, and hand off to human review.
Read the complete fact and application rows
Project: Private Texas classroom project; owner, contractor, and derivative claimant recorded. Ledger: Invoice, approval, payment, change order, and performance events retained. Property: Project address and legal description remain required review fields. Notice: Claimant role, month of work, recipients, delivery, and statutory timing need verification. Affidavit: Completion, termination, abandonment, indebtedness, and claimant class affect filing analysis. Waiver: Only the statutory conditions and forms should drive waiver status. Handoff: No lien validity or deadline is computed from this incomplete packet.
Narrow summary
Use obligation schemas for inspectable contract-event traces, but keep statutory lien rights, notices, filings, waivers, and deadline judgments on their own sourced human-review path.