Do we need a lawyer letter before bring the case to small claim court?

A "lawyer's letter", as you call it, is an attempt to settle a case before the parties incur the time and expense of litigation.  Having an attorney send it is meant to show that you should be taken seriously, in that you have already consulted an attorney and are ready to go to court if necessary.  A demand letter It is never a requirement, much less one sent by an attorney.  Unless you feel that sending a "lawyer's letter" is likely to get you a quick favorable settlement, don't send it; the cost of hiring an attorney is generally not worth it in a small claims case. Although you didn't ask, there are 2 things I noticed in your question that trouble me.  First, you are planning to bring this in small claims court.  Given that the entirte job has to be done over, it is hard for me to believe that the damages are small enough for the case to be heard in small claims court, where jurisdiction is generally limited to claims for no more than a few thousand dollars. Second, you mention that the contractor has a business.  Is that business its own entity, like a corporation or llc?  If so, was your contract with the entity, or the individual?  Individual owners of a business entity, like a corporation or llc, are generally not personaly liable for the contracts of the entity.  If the contract is with the entity, that is who you will have to sue for breach of contract, not the individual (although the individual may still be liable for negligence if you can show that he personally was negligent in performing the work). If you obtain a judgment which is not paid, there will be many collection procedures open to you, including the ability to cause the judgment debtor's assets to be sold in order to pay his/its judgment.