§ 5.2.3 Determination of Nature, Priority, and Extent of a Lien or Other Security Interest.

• Jurisdiction: Arizona

§ 5.2.3 Determination of Nature, Priority, and Extent of a Lien or Other Security Interest. A declaratory judgment action lies to determine a party’s lien rights and his priority vis-a-vis other lienholders. The action can be brought whether the lien is contractual or statutory. A.R.S. § 12-1832 .

Western Savings & Loan Ass’n v. Robinson, 14 Ariz. App. 393, 483 P.2d 806 (1971), illustrates the use of a declaratory judgment to determine a lienholder’s rights in property as against the rights of other claimants. The plaintiffs were owners of lots in a subdivision and claimed that their right to the use and enjoyment of the subdivision’s golf course was appurtenant to the land they owned and superior to the mortgage lien of Western Savings & Loan Association. Id. at 394, 483 P.2d at 807. The association counterclaimed for strict foreclosure. On appeal from the trial court’s dismissal of both the complaint and the counterclaim, the Arizona Court of Appeals reversed the dismissal of the complaint, affirmed the dismissal of the...