Today, a number of generative artificial intelligences (AI) assist in the drafting process, and quite effectively too. For a number of years now, various websites have been offering free demand letter templates, encouraging many creditors to draft and send demand letters themselves. There's nothing new under the sun in observing that the arrival of AI objectively reinforces the desire to draft documents oneself, something that only yesterday was still sometimes entrusted to one's lawyer.
In reality, the two approaches are not incompatible, but it is important to proceed in the right order, distinguishing between the advantages of each approach.
Commercial relationships can be affected by unpaid invoices, services or goods not delivered as ordered, or even unacceptable behaviour such as unfair competition.
The advantages and limitations of amicable self-resolution
Trying to resolve a problem amicably is a healthy approach that saves time and gets to the heart of the matter.
However, the person we are addressing may become locked into a refusal to pay, to deliver or to modify their strategy, thereby competing unfairly.
It is at the amicable approach stage that it makes sense to draft a document yourself, but you should be warned about the limits of this exercise if you are inexperienced.
Writing a formal notice is not just a stylistic exercise. It's a legal act that commits you, sometimes heavily.
Communications between companies or with consumers can all be used in court. The slightest miscalculation, the slightest concession of shared blame or the slightest tolerance of an adjustment in delivery or other matter can backfire at the stage of legal proceedings. We have seen a number of cases where company directors have gone so far out of their way to cut corners as to give the impression that their claim, however legitimate, is not so solid.
When it's time to hand over to your lawyer
It is therefore advisable, when giving formal notice yourself, to confine yourself to the essentials, to demand a clear service or payment and to make it clear that the next stage will be a pre-judicial approach, by way of a lawyer.
In this way, the timeframe of the case is transparent: once the parties have entered into amicable discussions, a legal professional is called in to complete the amicable phase.
If the formal notice you have drawn up yourself is unsuccessful, you pass it on to your lawyer.
At the very least, it will ask itself the following questions:
- Is there a written contract, and what clauses should be activated from the outset?
- What is the content of previous communications between the parties?
- How do you calculate interest that has already fallen due?
- How do I charge a partial payment?
- In the case of an open-ended contract, should the balance be claimed or the contract terminated?
- What concessions are you really prepared to accept, in a balance between winning every case, sometimes after years of proceedings, or getting back what you consider to be the essentials quickly?
The added value of a formal notice sent by a lawyer
A formal notice drawn up and signed by a lawyer and complying with legal requirements interrupts the statute of limitations.
The information sent by the creditor himself, whether generated by an AI or not, is not.
It also has a strategic value: it sends a clear message to the debtor - the case has just changed dimension.
This is the moment when the creditor shows that it is ready to go one step further.
Lastly, where it is uncontested, a formal notice can already constitute a private document allowing a protective attachment, for example on the debtor's bank account.
What we offer with our Business Claim portal
We assist our corporate clients with the recovery of unpaid invoices and other disputes, both recurrent and non-recurrent.
For customers with recurrent debt recovery, we put in place a working method that distributes the roles between amicable debt recovery by the customer - following a model established by us with the customer - and amicable debt recovery, then enforced if necessary, by us.
So don't hesitate to contact us, whether it's for a specific formal notice or a broader programme to manage your litigation.
