Legal Question in Construction Law in California

Absolutely. It is completely illegal for a contractor to collect payment for work not completed at or materials not delivered to the jobsite. Report him to the Contractors State License Board, file a claim against his license bond for completion of the work and find another contractor.

Mr. McCormick is legally correct, and firing the present contractor may be your best choice, but also consider the cost and possible additional time to find and bring up to speed a replacement, the possible hassle of liens and suit from the present guy, and whether there is some possibility of avoiding all this by negotiating with him, and maybe giving a small partial payment and small installments every day they work and make progress. Sometimes bargaining can produce a better result that throwing legal weight around. Not always.