Nonpayment by a Client in Florida: Your Options

November 12 2026

Matthew Fornaro

Business Litigation Attorney · Coral Springs, FL

Matthew Fornaro is a Florida business law attorney serving Coral Springs, Parkland, and Broward County. He represents small businesses in commercial litigation, contract disputes, and business torts. Schedule a consultation →

Key Takeaways

Florida business law protects companies from unfair competition, contract breaches, and partner disputes.
Acting early saves time, money, and business relationships.
An experienced business attorney helps you assess risk and choose the right legal strategy.

If a client in Florida has stopped paying you, your next steps depend on three things: what your contract says, what kind of work you did, and how much time has passed. Act in this order. Gather the paper trail, send a written demand, and check any lien or notice deadlines right away. Then choose between negotiation, mediation, small claims or a lawsuit. Waiting is the one move that costs you options.

This guide is for business owners, contractors, freelancers and startup founders who have done the work and are still waiting on the money.

Fornarolegal

Address Unpaid Client Balances

Fornarolegal provides practical legal guidance to South Florida businesses handling contract disputes and seeking to resolve payment issues.

Visit

TL;DR

Collect the contract, invoices, proof of delivery and every message about the balance before you do anything else.
Send a clear written demand with a payment deadline. It often settles the matter, and it sets up everything that follows.
On construction or improvement work, lien and notice deadlines are short and strict. Check them first, even before you demand payment.
Florida gives you five years to sue on a written contract, but evidence and leverage fade much sooner.
Match the tool to the amount: negotiation, mediation, small claims or a lawsuit. A lawyer helps most when the balance is large or the client is disputing the work.

First, work out why the client is not paying
Build your file before you send anything
Check the deadlines that can end a claim
Send a demand letter that does real work
Choose the right path by amount and facts
Mistakes that cost business owners their money
Our perspective
Talk to a South Florida business litigation lawyer
Prevent the next nonpayment
FAQ
Sources

First, work out why the client is not paying

Nonpayment looks the same on your books whatever the cause, but the right response is different for each.

The client can’t pay. Cash flow trouble is the most common reason. These clients usually respond to a payment plan, especially one that is put in writing and backed by a signed acknowledgment of the debt.

The client won’t pay. Some clients simply hold the money because you are the cheapest creditor to ignore. A firm demand and a credible next step usually change that.

The client disputes the work. They say it was late, incomplete or not what was agreed. This is a contract dispute, and your documents decide it. Our guide to resolving payment disputes with clients walks through how these disagreements usually unfold.

The client says someone else owes you. On construction projects, an owner may say it paid the general contractor, or a general contractor may say it is waiting on the owner. Your rights then run through lien and notice rules rather than only through your contract.

Write down which of these you believe applies. It shapes your demand letter and tells you whether you are heading toward a collection problem or a litigation problem.

Build your file before you send anything

A claim is only as strong as its proof. Before the first demand goes out, pull together:

The signed agreement, proposal or purchase order, plus any change orders or emails that changed the scope or price.
Every invoice, with the date sent, how it was sent and the payment terms printed on it.
Proof you performed: delivery receipts, timesheets, photos, approvals, completed deliverables, sign-offs.
Communications about the work and the balance. Texts and emails count. Do not delete anything.
A payment ledger showing what was paid, what remains and any late fees your contract allows.
Your licenses and registrations, if the work required them. A licensing gap can become the client’s defense, so know where you stand.

If the contract is thin or missing, do not panic. Course of dealing, emails and invoices can establish an agreement. You will want an attorney to look at it before you rely on that argument, though.

Check the deadlines that can end a claim

Contract claims

Under Florida’s limitations statute, an action on a written contract generally must be filed within five years. Claims on contracts that are not in writing carry a shorter period, so a handshake deal gives you less time, not more. Do not treat five years as a plan. Witnesses move, records get lost and clients close their companies.

Construction and improvement work

If your unpaid invoice relates to work on real property in Florida, Chapter 713 lien law may give you a powerful second path. Two timing rules matter most:

Notice to owner. A lienor who is not in direct contract with the owner generally must serve a notice to owner no later than 45 days after first furnishing labor or materials. Miss it and you can lose lien rights, even if the work was perfect.
Claim of lien. The claim of lien must be recorded within 90 days after you finish furnishing labor or services or materials.

A recorded lien does not last forever either. Under the lien statute, it expires after one year unless an action to enforce it is started in that time.

The lien rules have technical content requirements and different rules for direct contractors and those further down the chain. If you are anywhere near these deadlines, speak with a construction attorney now. Our construction litigation practice handles payment disputes on building projects.

Public projects

Work for a government body follows separate prompt payment rules and, on bonded projects, bond claim procedures with their own notice windows. If your unpaid client is a public entity or a prime contractor on a public job, identify the bond and the notice rules before anything else.

Send a demand letter that does real work

A good demand letter is not an angry email. It is a short, factual document you may later hand to a judge. It should:

Identify the parties, the agreement and the work performed.
State the exact amount owed, with invoice numbers and dates.
Cite the contract term that makes the amount due, including any interest or late fees the contract allows.
Set a specific deadline for payment, commonly 7 to 14 days.
Say what you will do next if the deadline passes, and mean it.
Be sent in a way you can prove: email plus certified mail, or the delivery method your contract requires.

Keep the tone professional. Never threaten criminal charges or contact the client’s customers to shame them. That can create problems for you. We lay out the structure step by step in how to write a demand letter for payment in Florida.

Check your contract before you send. Some agreements require written notice of default, a cure period or negotiation before any suit. Skipping those steps hands the client an easy argument.

Choose the right path by amount and facts

Situation	Usually fits	Why
Small balance, undisputed, client responsive	Demand letter and payment plan	Fast and cheap; put the plan in writing
Moderate balance, client disputes quality or scope	Mediation, then suit if needed	Lets both sides test the facts without full litigation costs
Balance within the small claims limit	Small claims court	Simplified procedure, no lawyer required
Large balance or well-documented debt	Lawsuit for breach of contract	Leads to a judgment you can enforce
Contract has an arbitration clause	Arbitration	The clause usually controls where the dispute is heard
Construction or improvement work	Lien and/or suit	Lien can pressure the owner and secure payment from the property

Small claims is attractive for modest invoices, but check the current dollar limit and filing rules with the clerk of court in your county, because limits and procedures are set by court rule and can change. Corporations and LLCs sometimes have to be represented by a lawyer in other courts, so confirm what applies to your entity.

Mediation and arbitration

Many Florida business contracts include a mediation or arbitration clause. Read yours. Even without one, mediation is a practical way to settle: a neutral helps both sides see the risk, and settlements can be written up as enforceable agreements. Our overview of early resolution techniques for contract disputes covers what works before anyone files.

Filing suit

A breach of contract suit asks the court to find that the client broke the agreement and to order payment. The stages are the complaint, service on the client, the client’s response, discovery, possible mediation and then trial or settlement. Most cases settle somewhere along the way, and the strength of your file drives the number.

Ask early whether your contract has an attorney’s fees clause. Florida courts generally follow the American rule, so fees are recoverable only where a contract or statute provides for them. If your contract has a prevailing-party clause, it can change the economics of the case, and it can cut both ways if you lose. We explain the practical side in our Florida contract dispute FAQ.

Mistakes that cost business owners their money

Continuing to work unpaid. Every extra week of work grows the exposure. Pause or stop work as your contract allows, and document why.
Informal payment promises. “I’ll pay Friday” texts are fine as evidence, but they are not a payment plan. Get terms, dates and a signature.
Missing a notice or lien deadline while waiting for the client to “come through.”
Poor records. Verbal scope changes with no written trace turn a clean claim into a he-said-she-said.
Ignoring collectability. A judgment against a client with no assets is hard to turn into cash. Look at the client’s business, property and bank relationships before you spend on a long fight.
Sending a demand that overstates the debt. Claim what you can prove.

Our perspective

Most of the unpaid-invoice cases we see are not lost at trial. They are weakened months earlier, when a good business owner keeps being patient. The contract was never clear on payment terms, the scope shifted by email, or a deadline slipped by while everyone hoped for a check.

Our approach is practical. We look at what you can prove, what the client can actually pay and how fast you need resolution, then we pick the least expensive route that gets you there. Sometimes that is a firm letter. Sometimes it is mediation, and sometimes it is a lawsuit with a clear plan behind it.

With more than 20 years of court experience representing South Florida businesses, we know that a credible next step is what moves a client who has gone quiet. If you want that conversation early, before the leverage fades, we are glad to have it.

Matthew

Talk to a South Florida business litigation lawyer

If your client has stopped paying and the balance matters to your business, we can review your contract and records and tell you which path fits. Fornarolegal represents small businesses, startups and entrepreneurs in Coral Springs, Parkland and across South Florida in payment disputes, business litigation and arbitration and mediation.

For a closer look at how we handle this kind of matter, read about our work as a lawyer for unpaid invoices in Florida.

Prevent the next nonpayment

Once the immediate problem is handled, tighten the contract so the next one is easier to collect:

Deposits and milestones. Tie payments to stages so your exposure never gets large.
Clear payment terms. Due dates, late fees, interest and what happens on default, all written down.
Scope and change-order language. Require written approval for changes and say that approved changes adjust the price.
Suspension rights. State that you may pause work when an invoice is overdue.
Fee-shifting and dispute clauses. Decide deliberately on attorney’s fees, venue, mediation and arbitration.
Personal guarantees from the owners of thinly capitalized clients.

These terms are cheapest to add before the work starts. Our guide on the common causes of contract disputes for small businesses shows where agreements usually break down, and a contract review before signing is the lowest-cost protection available.

FAQ

How long do I have to sue a client for nonpayment in Florida?

For a written contract, the general limit is five years. Oral and other contract types can carry a shorter period. Construction lien rights run on far shorter clocks, measured in days, so check those first.

Can I put a lien on a client’s property for an unpaid invoice?

Only in specific situations. Florida’s construction lien law covers labor, services and materials furnished to improve real property, and it has strict notice and recording steps. An unpaid consulting or software invoice, for example, generally does not qualify. A lawyer can tell you quickly whether your work does.

Do I need a lawyer to collect an unpaid invoice?

Not always. A small, undisputed balance may be resolved with your own demand letter or small claims. A lawyer becomes worth it when the amount is significant, the client disputes the work, the contract has dispute clauses, or lien deadlines are in play.

Can I recover my attorney’s fees from the client?

Usually only if your contract or a statute provides for it. Check the contract for a prevailing-party or fee clause before you decide how to proceed, because it affects both the cost and the risk of litigation.