Freelancer or 1099 contractor not paid — suing in California small claims court
Send a dated demand letter with the invoice attached. Freelance non-payment is overwhelmingly a case that settles at the letter stage, because the client has no defense and knows it.
General information about California procedure. We are not a law firm and cannot advise on your case.
Your deadline to file
4 years — Written contract or accepted written proposal (Code Civ. Proc. § 337).
The rule that decides most of these cases
Sue as yourself, not through your company, if you can. An individual may claim up to $12,500 in California small claims; a corporation, LLC or partnership is capped at $6,250. For an unincorporated freelancer, the higher limit is the one that applies. (Code Civ. Proc. § 116.221)
What this kind of case is worth
Freelancer non-payment claims in California small claims court typically run from $500 to $12,500. Note the entity trap: if you sue through a corporation, LLC or partnership your ceiling is $6,250, not $12,500. An unincorporated sole proprietor or freelancer sues as an individual and keeps the higher limit.
| Amount you are claiming | Filing fee |
|---|---|
| up to $1,500 | $30 |
| over $1,500 up to $5,000 | $50 |
| over $5,000 up to $12,500 | $75 |
| More than 12 small claims filed in the past 12 months | $100 |
How to start
Before you file, you have to have asked the defendant to pay — the SC-100 asks you to confirm it. A written demand with a deadline does three useful things at once: it satisfies that requirement, it creates a dated record the judge can see, and quite often it ends the dispute without a filing fee.
If the letter does not work, file SC-100 with the small claims division of the Superior Court in the right county — generally where the defendant lives or does business, or where the deal was made or performed.
What to bring to the hearing
A small claims judge has minutes, not hours. Walk in with these, each one labelled, plus a copy for the judge and a copy for the other side.
- The signed contract, SOW, or the email accepting your proposal
- Your invoices with dates and terms
- Proof of delivery — file transfer logs, published work, a client sign-off
- The message thread, especially approval of the deliverables
- Your demand letter and proof of sending
What they will argue back
Expect one of these. Knowing which is coming is most of the preparation.
- They claim the work was never approved — bring the acceptance messages
- They claim endless revisions were owed — bring the contract's revision terms
- They claim they contracted with a different entity
Serving the papers
Filing is not the hard part. Service of process is where self-represented cases most often come apart. The defendant has to be formally notified, you cannot do it yourself, and you must file proof that it happened on form SC-104 before the hearing. Use the sheriff, a registered process server, or any adult who is not a party to the case.
The hearing
You cannot bring a lawyer to argue for you at a California small claims hearing. Neither can the other side. That is the whole point of the forum: the rules are simplified so two people can explain a disagreement to a judge without needing representation. You may get advice from an attorney before and after, and lawyers are permitted on appeal — but on the day, it is you.
Common questions
Is it worth suing over a $1,500 invoice?
Often yes. The filing fee on a $1,500 claim is $30, you do not need a lawyer, and California small claims hearings are short and informal. The real question is collectability — a going-concern business with a bank account is worth pursuing; a dissolved company usually is not.
Do I need a written contract to win?
No. An oral agreement is enforceable; it simply gives you 2 years instead of 4 and makes the terms harder to prove. In practice an email thread, an accepted quote or a chat where they approved the scope does the work of a contract.
Can I claim the time I spent chasing payment?
Generally no. Courts award the contract amount and allowable costs, not the hours you spent on collection, unless your contract specifically provided for collection costs. What you can recover is the filing fee and service costs as costs of suit.
Start with a demand letter
Most California small claims cases settle before anyone sees a courtroom. The letter is free to write, and you can have us print and certified-mail it for $29.
No account needed to start. We are not a law firm and cannot give legal advice.