Sue Contractor Georgia Small Claims: How to Recover a Deposit or Repair Costs

Common Contractor Disputes in Georgia Magistrate Court

Contractor claims are one of the most frequent case types in Georgia's Magistrate Courts. Typical scenarios:

• A contractor collected a deposit and never started work
• Work was partially done but abandoned
• The finished work was defective and needs to be redone
• A contractor caused damage to your property during the job

As long as your principal damages are under $25,000 (the current Magistrate Court cap under HB 999), you can file in Magistrate Court rather than hiring a lawyer and going to State or Superior Court.

The First Problem: Who Exactly Are You Suing?

This is where most contractor claims go wrong. You can't just name "Joe's Plumbing" on the Statement of Claim — that might be a trade name, not a legal entity, and a judgment against a trade name can be unenforceable.

If the contractor is a sole proprietor, you sue the individual: "Joseph Smith d/b/a Joe's Plumbing." Check the Clerk of Superior Court in the county where the business operates — that's where Georgia trade names (DBAs) are registered (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-490). Georgia has no statewide trade name registry.

If the contractor is an LLC or corporation, search the Georgia Secretary of State Corporations Division website. You'll find the exact registered entity name and the registered agent for service. Use that exact name on the Statement of Claim.

If you're not sure, search both. The Secretary of State database is free to search. Getting the defendant name wrong doesn't just delay your case — it can make the judgment worthless for collection.

Where to File

Venue depends on the defendant type:

• Individual contractor: file in the county where they live
• LLC or corporation: file where the registered office or principal place of business is located, or where the breach happened if the entity maintains an office and transacts business in that county

If an individual contractor moved during the project, venue is based on their current residence at the time of filing.

Statutes of Limitation

File within the applicable window or lose the right to sue:

• Written contract (signed agreement, detailed proposal): 6 years from the breach (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-24)
• Oral agreement (handshake deal, verbal quote): 4 years (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-25)
• Property damage caused by the contractor's work: 4 years (O.C.G.A. § 9-3-30)

If you have a written contract, keep it in your evidence file. If the agreement was verbal, document everything you remember about the terms — especially the scope of work and the amount paid.

Building Your Evidence

Contractor disputes live and die on documentation. Your evidence binder should include:

1. The contract or written agreement (or your written account of the verbal terms)
2. Proof of payment — cancelled checks, bank transfers, Venmo/Zelle receipts
3. Photos of the work — before, during, and after, including any visible defects
4. Written communications — texts, emails, voicemails (transcribed) showing the contractor's promises and failures
5. Repair estimates — at least two independent written estimates for the cost to fix or complete the work. Under O.C.G.A. § 24-9-921, these estimates are admissible if you serve copies on the defendant at least 10 days before trial with a sworn affidavit from the estimator
6. The demand letter and certified mail receipt

Prepare three identical copies of everything for the hearing.

Calculating Your Damages

In a deposit-and-abandonment case, your damages are typically the deposit amount minus the fair value of any work actually completed. If the contractor did half the job, you can't claim the entire deposit — only the unperformed portion.

In a defective-work case, damages are the reasonable cost to repair or complete the work to the standard that was promised.

Pre-judgment interest may apply. For a fixed, liquidated demand with no contract interest rate, you can claim the statutory rate of 7% simple interest per annum under O.C.G.A. §§ 7-4-2 and 7-4-15 from the date the debt became due.

The Georgia Small Claims Filing Guide walks through the filing process step by step, from verifying the contractor's legal entity name through preparing your evidence binder for the hearing.

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