The claims TSC Law sees from the trades
- The finished job nobody paid for. Work complete, punch list done, invoice ignored — the cleanest claim in Tulsa County Small Claims Court.
- The half-paid job. Deposit collected, progress payment skipped, and the customer thinks the deposit was the whole price.
- The cancelled project. Materials ordered and cut to spec, then the customer "went another direction." Your out-of-pocket expenses and lost labor may be recoverable contract damages.
- The change order they now deny. Extra work performed on a text or a handshake — collectible, but the evidence has to be prepared carefully.
The deadlines on your invoice
Oklahoma's limitation periods (12 O.S. §95) decide how long an unpaid job stays collectible:
| Your paper | Time to sue |
|---|---|
| Signed proposal or written contract | 5 years |
| Handshake or verbal agreement | 3 years |
Three years sounds like plenty until you are rebuilding a two-year-old job from memory. The older the debt, the colder the evidence and the harder the debtor is to find. It is recommended that you file while the evidence trail is warm.
Suing in Tulsa County Small Claims Court even if they moved
Debt cases get a venue option most Plaintiffs do not know exists: a suit on an open account may be brought in the county where the debt was contracted, at your option. If you bid the job in Tulsa County and did the work here, the customer who has moved to another county or across the state can generally still be brought back to Tulsa Small Claims Court.