Warning letter before a lawsuit – how to draft it correctly (including a sample letter)?

What is a pre-claim warning letter?

A pre-suit warning letter or pre-proceeding warning letter is a letter sent to a party against whom a lawsuit is being considered. This letter details In a nutshell (It is usually best to save the full details for the statement of claim) the claims against the opposing party, and make demands that you want the opposing party to perform/fulfill.

The purpose of a pre-suit letter is to inform the opposing party that you intend to file a lawsuit against them, detail the allegations, and allow the opposing party to respond.

There can be different outcomes from sending a letter before taking legal action. First, you can get your full claims, thus saving yourself a lot of time in legal proceedings (which can last years), and also a lot of money (Lawyer's fees, Court fee etc').

Secondly, if the party that betrayed refuses some of your demands, then the dispute between the parties is still reduced, and thus the legal process is expected to be simpler, shorter, and also cheaper.

Third, if the opposing party refuses all of your demands, and you are sent a response to the warning letter you sent, then at this point you know what the opposing party's defense claims are, and you are now able to draft a claim more correctly/smartly.

רביעית, אם מכתב התראה לפני תביעה זכה להתעלמות מוחלטת, במסגרת ההליך המשפטי הדבר עשוי לתת לכם "נקודות זכות" אצל השופט, שכן, אתם תוכלו לטעון שעשיתם כמיטב יכולתכם על מנת להימנע מבזבוז זמן שיפוטי, אך דווקא הצד שכנגד בחר להתעלם ואילץ אתכם לפנות לערכאות משפטיות.

If the warning letter is not answered by the other party or does not achieve the goal you wanted, you will need to draft a claim (The complete guide to drafting a claim(and then file a lawsuit with the court to obtain the requested relief)The complete guide to filing a claimBoth guides are updated in accordance with the new Civil Procedure Regulations.

How do you draft a warning letter before a lawsuit?

A warning letter can be drafted in various ways. The form of the warning letter is not particularly important. What is important is to convey the message clearly. Therefore, any example of a warning letter that you will find online or later in this article is just a recommendation for convenience, but certainly not the main thing.

Can be found online Many examples of warning letters on various topics.

An example of a pre-claim warning letter format according to the accepted wording can be found below.

Where should I send the response to the warning letter?

Instead of providing you with an example of a warning letter, I think it is more effective and appropriate to teach you how drafting a warning letter from start to finish can serve you better, for your unique needs.

One thing that many people tend to forget when drafting a warning letter is where you want it sent. The response to the warning letter To that end, I suggest writing all of your relevant contact information at the top of the letter, in a manner similar to this:

סביר להניח שכל אדם שיקבל את המכתב הזה יבין מיד שהוא התקבל מעו"ד אדי בליטשטיין, ויבין גם כיצד ניתן ליצור קשר עם עו"ד אדי בליטשטיין, לרבות כתובת המשרד אליה ניתן לשלוח בדואר מכתב מענה.

This way, there is no confusion or uncertainty, and the recipient knows without a shadow of a doubt who contacted him and what his address is for sending a response.

Who is a warning letter sent to before a lawsuit?

Whenever you send a letter before taking legal action to a specific person, try to explicitly state their name and address:

If the warning letter is sent to a company, and you do not know who the relevant person in the company should receive the warning letter, you can omit the name of the person and department, and specify the name of the company and the exact address. You can always address the letter to the company's legal counsel.

אל תשכחו לציין את התאריך המדויק בו שלחתם את המכתב (חלקו העליון השמאלי של המכתב). לתאריך חשיבות לא מעטה, משום שמלבד תאריך משלוח (או קבלת המכתב אצל הצד שכנגד – תלוי כיצד שלחתם את המכתב, דואר רגיל לעומת דוא"ל), לתאריך יש חשיבות לצורך מהירות המענה למכתב.

Usually, at the end of every warning letter, it is customary to write that if the warning letter is not answered within X days (usually between 7 and 14 days), the sender of the letter will not continue to wait but will go to court. The goal is to make the opposing party understand that he does not have all the time in the world to respond to the warning letter, but that his time is limited, and after that time has expired, he will have to deal with the claims in court.

The letter must state how you delivered it to the other party (if by fax – you must keep the confirmation of delivery, and call to verify that the fax was received. If you sent it by registered mail – print out the information from the Israel Post website indicating that the letter was delivered to the other party, and keep the confirmation of delivery signed by the recipient that you will receive from Israel Post).

ניתן בהחלט לציין מספר דרכי מסירה. לדוגמה: דוא"ל ופקס ולציין לאיזה דוא"ל ומספר פקס שלחתם את מכתב ההתראה.

שימוש במונח "מ.ל.ב" – פירושו של מונח זה הוא "מבלי לפגוע בזכויות". מטרתו של מונח זה הוא להבהיר לצד שכנגד (ולבית המשפט, ככל שהמקרה יגיע לבית המשפט) הוא שהתנהל משא ומתן בין הצדדים שאינו מיועד לעיניו של בית המשפט. תיאורטית, הצד שכנגד לא רשאי להציג מכתב זה ללא אישורכם בבית המשפט. מעשית, גם אם תרשמו על מכתב לפני נקיטת הליכים משפטיים מ.ל.ב סביר להניח שהצד שכנגד יציג אותו בבית המשפט, ואתם תצטרכו להתנגד לכך ולפרט בפני השופט מדוע לשיטתכם אין להציג את המכתב במסגרת ההליכים המשפטיים.

Contents of a pre-claim warning letter

Title of the letter – על הכותרת להיות ברורה ולהעיד על תוכן המכתב. כדאי לציין כבר בכותרת כי זו התראה לפני נקיטת הליכים משפטיים ולציין במה מדובר. לדוגמה: "התראה לפני נקיטת הליכים משפטיים בגין Breach of contract עם מר פלוני אלמוני".

I generally suggest keeping the wording of the warning letter short. However, each case should be examined on its own merits. More complex cases will require a multi-page pre-claim letter.

Budget time for response. – As I mentioned before, I usually tend to allow up to 14 days for a response to a warning letter sent on my behalf. Here too, each case must be examined on its own merits. There may be cases in which an urgent/immediate response is needed, and therefore the time period will be shorter. If it is a complex case that requires a longer examination time, the lawyer on behalf of the recipient usually contacts the recipient and requests additional time to complete the examinations. It is up to you to decide whether to agree to wait an additional period of time or to file a claim without waiting.

It is worth emphasizing (but not mandatory) that you will not send reminder letters, to let the other party understand that you expect a response within the time period you have allotted, otherwise you will go to court.

It is worth noting Section 7, detailed in the example, at the end of the warning letter sent on your behalf (don't forget to make adjustments for male/female, depending on the identity of the writer of the letter or the person being represented on your behalf). The purpose of this section is to clarify that this is a warning letter that does not necessarily exhaust all of your claims and that if a lawsuit is filed, it may include additional claims and/or demands for additional relief not requested in the warning letter.

Don't forget to include your name at the end of the letter and sign it.

Lawyer services for drafting a warning letter or a response to such a letter

Attorney Eddie Blitstein Provides legal services to clients who wish to send warning letters or clients who have received such a letter and wish to receive legal assistance in order to respond to it or continue legal representation if and when the case reaches the courts.

In conclusion

In most cases, it is not mandatory to send a letter before filing a lawsuit. However, there are many advantages to providing notice to the potential defendant before the actual filing of the lawsuit. Sending a notice before filing a lawsuit may save you a great deal of time and money in legal proceedings (in these cases, it is advisable to consult with Claims lawyer).

Furthermore, in response to a warning letter, you may receive data or a version of the potential defendant that will assist you in filing or during the lawsuit. This is a huge advantage and may sometimes be an advantage that will actually end the lawsuit before it even begins.

There is no single way to draft a warning letter, the main thing is to convey the message clearly. It is always important to make sure to clearly state your requirements so that the recipient of the letter does not have to wonder what you want from them.

It is also worth clarifying that you require a response within a limited number of days. If you do not do this, you may receive a response to a warning letter after more than a month.

Frequently Asked Questions Regarding Pre-Claim Warning Letter