Legal notices
A notice served, and followed to the last day.
A legal notice is a formal demand: pay what is owed, keep what was promised, or answer for it. This is how one is drafted, served and followed. If one has been sent for you, track it with the reference in your email.
Already sent
Track your notice
Enter the tracking reference from the email sent when your notice was dispatched.
What a notice is for
A demand on record, before anything else.
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Cheque bounce
The demand under section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, due within thirty days of the bank’s return memo.
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Money owed
Unpaid invoices, loans and dues: the demand that comes before a recovery suit.
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Breach of contract
A notice that records the breach, and what must be done to put it right.
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Tenancy
Ending a tenancy, or demanding rent and possession, as the lease and the law require.
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Employment
Unpaid salary, termination, and the notices either side may send.
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Replying to a notice
A notice received deserves an answer on record, within the time it gives.
What to expect
How a notice runs, step by step.
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The facts
What happened, what is owed or was promised, and the papers that show it.
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The draft
The demand, the facts it rests on, and the time given to comply.
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Signed and sent
Signed by an advocate and sent by Speed Post (which took in registered post in September 2025), and often by email as well.
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Delivery
Proof of delivery is kept. A notice refused or returned can still count as served.
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The waiting period
The time the notice gives runs from delivery: fifteen days for a cheque, and often longer for other demands.
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The next step
A reply, a settlement or a case. The notice is the record each one builds on.
The tracker at the top of this page follows a notice sent through the advocates’ desk: when it was dispatched, when it was delivered, and the days left in the waiting period.
Cheque bounce
Three dates decide a cheque case.
The notice must go within thirty days of the bank’s memo. The drawer then has fifteen days to pay, and the complaint must follow within a month. Enter your dates and see where each falls.
- Send the legal notice byNot yet
- They must pay byNot yet
- File the complaint byNot yet
General information under ss. 138 and 142 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881. It is not legal advice. An advocate should confirm your dates.
Questions
Asked often, answered plainly.
This page explains the law in general. It is not advice on any one matter: that comes from an advocate who has read yours.
Is a legal notice always required before going to court?
Not always. The law requires one in some cases, such as a cheque bounce under section 138, or a suit against the government under section 80 of the Civil Procedure Code. Elsewhere it is usually wise, because it puts the demand on record and often settles the matter.
What if the other side refuses to accept the notice?
A notice sent by post to the right address and refused, or returned unclaimed, can generally be treated as served. The postal record becomes the proof.
How long should I wait after the notice?
As long as the notice gives, or the law sets. For a cheque, the drawer has fifteen days from receiving the notice to pay. For most other demands the notice itself fixes the time.
Where do I find my tracking reference?
In the email sent when your notice was dispatched. The reference number printed on the notice, and the postal article number, are not accepted by the tracker.
Your own matter
Bring it to the advocates.
Say what is owed or what was promised, in your own words. An advocate reads it and tells you whether a notice is the right first step.