Maritime lawyer in Ft Lauderdale??

I second Michael Moore

It doesn't necessarily have to be Michael- he has a great group of partners and staff too.
https://www.moore-and-co.com

Seems like a fairly common problem in SE Florida.
Some of the clients would slip out and leave town without telling the hard working contractor.
The solution, if such an escape was expected, was to hire a diver and remove the prop(s)
It worked well, they were literally dead in water, but I also knew contractors who lost money by not removing props or disabling fuel systems.
Sure you can get a Contractors or Sheriffs Lien if the bill has not been paid.
Good luck if the scumbag has money to pay.
I had a guy renting dock space from me some 15 years ago, a 38’ Morgan sailboat. Some charity organization, but the nutty CEO sent a message that he would not pay any more dock rent and good luck kicking him out.

(Can’t just cut the dock lines or tow him away, unfortunately, he knew that)

Fortunately the boat had a brand new Perkins 4-108 diesel: Told him I would remove parts and pieces of the engine and sell on eBay until the dock rent was
Covered.
Next day there was an overnight UPS letter with the full amount.

Good luck on collecting, if your paperwork and work-order is golden, the judge will take care of you.

Call Ms. G Divers, they have the equipment.

What size props are you thinking about. We changed a prop on a 110' at Coinjock with 2 guys and a rope.

They may have the equipment but they're not about to perform a criminal act.

Is the boat federally documented or flagged outside the U.S.? Either could cause expensive complications and collection difficulties if the boat is taken or sold out of state. Once legal action is taken voluntary payment becomes very unlikely. Most collection troubles come from miscommunications. Is is possible you have a 3rd party who could intercede and talk with the person who owes you? I spent 17 years in the collection business. One particular case comes to mind. A fellow owed $16,000. The creditor couldn't collect it. He sent it to a collection agency and then to a lawyer who got judgement. After 3 years of collection efforts the lawyer sent the account to me. 4 weeks later it was paid in full and I took 50%. The lawyer called to ask how I did it. I told him "professional secret". I didn't dare tell him how easy it was. I made 4 phone calls. One to set up payment and 3 more to confirm the money was ready to be picked up in 3 installments.
P.S. I'm not looking for the job. Long long long time out of that business.

Keep in mind that most attorney's or agencies charge between 1/3 and 50% of what they collect unless you pay a flat or hourly rate up front and that many people consider the debt a cheap loan at 9% APR (and that interest is often only charged after judgement).

No, keep in mind that reputable maritime attorney's charge hourly rates for their services and do not do contingencies like debt collectors do. Boats are arrested in South Florida successfully all the time and generally it results in very quick payment.

For lesser amounts I also know captains and mechanics who have been very successful in small claims court. Florida small claims is now $8000.

With large amounts you're often dealing with notorious non-payers who think all bills are negotiable. With smaller amounts, you're often dealing with those who just don't think you'll do anything and the moment they hear from your lawyer or you file suit, they figure out you will.

Everyone get good legal advice please and don't play rambo or give away a large portion to debt collectors. They are often the only way for unsecured debt and for judgement proof debtors, but here you're talking major assets owned by people with something to lose and easily attached as security.

Hourly or flat rates don't give incentive to collect and can often be throwing good money after bad or in giving up 50% after laying out the hourly. Not saying that going legal isn't a necessary option sometimes, but going legal should be the last not the first option.

Have you tried talking with them? Do they have any issues with the workmanship? Do they have any issues with the bill being much more than it was supposed to be? I had one issue in all my years and guy just kept stalling and stalling to pay me, by asking a question, I'd respond immediately, and he'd take 7-10 days to respond with another question. This went on for over 2 months and finally I sent him an email offering to reduce my bill by 10% if he pays it within 48 hours or I'd hand it to my attorney. He didn't and he was an attorney. My attorney served him with a Florida Civil theft suit for 3x the amount owed (FL law) and the option for him to pay the normal bill in 48 hours and we'd drop it. He paid the very next day. Cost me $500 but was well worth it.

The other more costly option is the maritime attorney, route, but having a vessel stickered and arrested sticks with the vessel long after he pays you. People don't forget seeing a vessel with those ugly US Marshalls stickers all over it.

Sounds like you handled that exactly right, except for the 7-10 day extensions. Sometimes it's just a matter of how you phrase things. That's where a 3rd party can come in handy. Very often people say 'You owe me X. When can you pay?' and the reply is 'As soon as I can', but they can never get X together. Breaking it into payments that the debtor sets the amount of can often make the difference. I've dealt with a surprising number of people who just don't mail payments and offering to pick it up can make the difference. That was the case with the $16,000 I collected. The key is figuring out what people mean by what they say. There are some straight up deadbeats, and Florida has more than its share due to their collection laws, but most people want to pay their debts. They just don't no how to get $100 out of $90. Of course there are some who require a little extra incentive, but make sure you don't get yourself in trouble along the way. Violating the FDCPA or other laws can cost you more than you're trying to collect.

I didn't give him 7-10 day extensions, he took that long to reply to each email......obviously as a method of stalling it.

Of course. You need to set a specific day for payment and follow up immediately. Most of the time the first promise is a lie. The key is often letting them have the lie, but not letting them get away with it. There really is a science and art to it. Sometimes it's patience. Sometimes compassion and understanding. Sometimes it requires other types of persuasion. Pick the wrong one and your money is gone or you're in jail and on the receiving end of a suit.
Btw emails are convenient and a good way to bill but a lousy way to collect. Calling or face to face are far more effective.