Receiving a Letter of Demand from an Attorney-at-Law can be worrying.
It may demand that you pay money, vacate a property, hand over possession of land, stop an alleged interference, perform an agreement, return property, compensate someone for a loss, or take some other action within a specified period.
It may also warn that legal proceedings will be instituted if you fail to comply.
If you have just received such a letter, the most important thing is not to react immediately.
First understand what is being claimed, check the facts and documents, and then decide what to do next.
1. Understand Exactly What Is Being Claimed
Read the entire letter carefully.
Do not focus only on phrases such as “legal proceedings will be instituted” or on the number of days given to respond.
Ask:
- Who is making the claim?
- What do they say happened?
- What right are they claiming?
- What do they say you did, or failed to do?
- What exactly are they asking you to do?
- What land, property, agreement, transaction or incident is involved?
- What dates and documents are mentioned?
- Has a deadline been given?
A Letter of Demand may concern an unpaid debt, possession of land, a boundary dispute, an agreement, a tenancy, a business transaction or many other civil disputes.
Your first task is simply to understand:
What exactly is this person claiming against me?
2. Remember: A Letter of Demand Is Not a Court Order
A Letter of Demand normally sets out the position of the person making the claim.
Even when it is sent through an Attorney-at-Law, it is not a judgment of a court.
A court has not, merely because the letter was sent, decided that you owe the money claimed, that the sender owns disputed land, that you are unlawfully occupying property, or that the other allegations are correct.
That does not mean the letter should be ignored.
It means you should not assume that the dispute has already been decided against you.
3. Do Not Assume Everything in the Letter Is Correct
A Letter of Demand usually presents one side of the story.
The claim may be correct, partly correct, based on incomplete facts or completely disputed.
In a money dispute, for example, payment may already have been made, the amount may be wrong, interest may be disputed, or you may deny that the debt exists.
In a land dispute, ownership may be disputed, boundaries may be unclear, possession may have a long history, inheritance may be involved, or there may be earlier agreements or documents that are not mentioned in the letter.
The sensible approach is to check the facts before admitting or denying anything.
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Why Oral Agreements Can Be Dangerous When Land or Property Is Involved
4. Keep the Letter and Gather Your Documents
Keep the Letter of Demand, its envelope and any attachments.
Then collect the material connected with the dispute.
For land or property matters, that may include deeds, survey plans, lease agreements, partition or testamentary documents, photographs, correspondence and previous court documents.
For money, contractual or business disputes, relevant material may include agreements, receipts, bank transfers, invoices, cheques, emails, WhatsApp messages and account statements.
Do not delete messages simply because they appear unimportant.
Also remember that one document does not necessarily decide the entire dispute. Documents must usually be considered together with the surrounding facts.
5. Prepare a Simple Timeline
Write down what happened in date order.
For example:
2018 – Property purchased.
2020 – Boundary wall constructed.
2023 – Survey carried out.
2025 – Boundary dispute began.
2026 – Letter of Demand received.
Or:
January – Money advanced.
March – Part payment received.
May – Further time requested.
September – Letter of Demand received.
A short timeline often makes a complicated dispute much easier to understand.
It is also very useful when obtaining legal advice.
6. Avoid an Immediate Emotional Response
Some Letters of Demand are strongly worded.
Do not immediately call the other party, send angry WhatsApp messages, make threats or post about the dispute on social media.
Also be careful about casual admissions.
Saying:
“Yes, I owe the money, but give me another three months.”
may have consequences very different from saying:
“I dispute the amount claimed.”
Similarly, in a land dispute, statements about ownership, boundaries or how possession began may later become important.
This does not mean denying something that is true.
It means understanding your position before making important statements about it.
7. Do Not Take Irreversible Action Merely Because the Letter Demands It
A Letter of Demand may require you to pay a substantial amount, vacate a property, hand over land, remove a structure, stop using property or return goods or documents.
Do not assume that you must immediately do everything stated in the letter merely because it came from an Attorney-at-Law.
At the same time, do not make the situation worse.
Where land or possession is disputed, for example, suddenly removing fences, changing locks, demolishing structures or attempting to forcibly change possession may create further problems.
Understand your position before taking an irreversible step.
8. Identify the Real Dispute
Ask yourself what the dispute is actually about.
Is it:
- money;
- ownership;
- possession;
- a boundary;
- rent or tenancy;
- an agreement;
- goods or services;
- construction;
- business;
- employment;
- return of property; or
- compensation?
The answer matters because different disputes require different responses.
An instalment proposal may make sense where an undisputed debt is involved.
It makes little sense where the real dispute is ownership of land.
A boundary dispute may require a survey. A contractual dispute may turn on the wording of the agreement.
First identify the real problem.
9. Pay Attention to Time
Many Letters of Demand give seven, fourteen or some other number of days to comply.
That period is not automatically the same as a deadline imposed by a court.
Nevertheless, do not leave the letter unattended for weeks.
Some disputes may also involve prescription or other legal time limits. If the events mentioned in the letter happened several years ago, specifically bring that fact to the attention of your Attorney-at-Law.
10. When Should You Obtain Legal Advice?
Legal advice is particularly important where:
- land or property is involved;
- ownership or possession is disputed;
- a substantial amount of money is claimed;
- you completely dispute the allegations;
- there is a deed, agreement, cheque or guarantee;
- the events happened several years ago;
- previous litigation is involved;
- you are being asked to vacate property or hand over possession; or
- you are considering making an admission or settlement proposal.
When meeting your Attorney-at-Law, take:
the Letter of Demand, the relevant documents and a short timeline.
What Should You Do Next?
Once you understand the claim, check the documents and identify what you agree with and what you dispute, the next question is:
Should I reply to the Letter of Demand—and if so, what should I say?
That question requires separate consideration because a reply can sometimes help resolve a dispute, while a badly worded reply may contain unnecessary admissions or weaken your position.
Read the companion guide
Quick Checklist
If you have just received a Letter of Demand:
Do not panic.
Do not ignore it.
Do not assume everything in it is correct.
Read the whole letter.
Gather your documents.
Prepare a timeline.
Avoid emotional communications.
Do not make important admissions or take irreversible action before understanding your position.
Then decide carefully how the Letter of Demand should be answered.
General information only. This article provides general legal information relating to Sri Lanka for legal literacy purposes. It is not legal advice regarding any particular dispute. The appropriate course of action depends on the facts, documents and applicable law in each individual case.