How to send or reply to a Legal Notice

We receive thousands of complaint calls from our platform users at LawRato.com for cheque bounce, recoveries, service or product deficiency, etc. where the first legal recourse is to send a legal notice. Thought of sharing this article on everything one needs to know on sending or replying to a legal notice in India.

What is a legal notice?

A legal notice is a formal communication indicating the opposite party be it a person or an entity that you are preparing to litigate a lawsuit against him in case if the demand is not fulfilled. It is a step taken before filing a suit and it is meant to warn the other party that a legal action may be initiated against him.

What is the procedure of sending a legal notice? 

1.    You can either draft your notice yourself or take assistance of a lawyer. It is advisable to engage a qualified lawyer as you need to be extremely cautious with the choice of words and language used. While drafting the notice, you need to be cautious of not admitting any fact which may work against you later in court. Once you send a legal notice, it cannot be changed and if you make any contradictory statement in court of law then it can weaken your case.

2.    You are required to send a legal notice on a plain paper or on the letterhead of the lawyer.

3.    Your notice should be addressed to the person against whom you have the grievances.

4.    In your notice, you must categorically mention that the addressee is expected to respond by 30 to 60 days. You must stipulate the time within which you expect the other party to fulfil the demands.

5.    The notice needs to be signed by both the sender and the lawyer. It needs to be send either through registered post or courier. It is advisable to ensure that the acknowledgment is retained.  

What should you do if you receive a legal notice?

1.    In case, if you have received a legal notice, the first thing you should do is call the sender of the notice and aim at resolving the dispute amicably.

2.    It is not mandatory to respond to a legal notice but it is advisable to send an appropriate reply to the notice.

3.    If you fail to sent a reply to a legal notice, the other party may use it as an advantage and while drafting the petition it may blame you for not adhering to the requirements of the notice which is why the case has been filed.

4.    If in your opinion, the facts stated in a legal notice are false and you need to contest the legal notice, then you can consult an experienced lawyer, take his assistance and draft a proper reply to the notice denying the contents of the notice. You must send the notice via registered post or courier.

5.    While sending the reply to the notice, check if the claim is time barred or not. If the claim is time-barred then you only need to reply that the claim is not within the limitation period.

What is the benefit of sending a legal notice?

Majority of matters are likely to settle even before the trial commences. If in your opinion your case can be settled, then you must consider all the alternatives before starting the lawsuit. You can opt to settle the matter through negotiation, mediation or arbitration. Through a legal notice you can demand from the other party to accede to your requests by clearing stating that you intend to initiate a legal action. In such a scenario the dispute can be settled without the trail being commenced.

You may send / reply to a legal notice through our network of thousands of top rated lawyers in India. Visit https://lawrato.com/send-legal-notice/ to know more.