What is a formal notice, and is it required?

What it actually accomplishes

It turns a disagreement into a file. As long as you are talking on the phone, each side remembers a different version. A dated letter fixes what you allege, what you want, and from when.

It also has a psychological effect worth not underestimating. Many people who ignore calls answer a lawyer's letter, because it signals that something further is possible.

In a substantial share of files, it is enough. It is the best cost-to-result ratio in all of civil law.

Required or not

A debtor may be put in default by the terms of the contract itself, where it stipulates that the mere lapse of time has that effect; by the extrajudicial demand the creditor addresses to them — the formal notice; by a judicial application; or by operation of law (article 1594).

Some situations place a debtor in default automatically, without notice: where the obligation could only usefully be performed within a time that has passed, or where it is clear it will not be performed, among others.

Even then, sending the letter is often the right call. Courts appreciate a party that tried to resolve the dispute before bringing it to them.

What it must contain

The Code already imposes a form: the extrajudicial demand by which a creditor puts a debtor in default must be made in writing (article 1595). A verbal warning is not a formal notice.

An effective formal notice is short and precise. It identifies the parties, sets out the facts without needless commentary, states the obligation that was not met, says exactly what you are demanding — an amount, a repair, delivery of goods — and allows a period to comply.

It closes by stating what will happen failing that. That sentence must be true: announcing proceedings you have no intention of bringing weakens the whole exercise, and it shows.

What it must not contain: insults, threats going beyond a civil remedy, or a claim that is obviously inflated. Those consistently rebound on their author.

How long to allow

The period must be sufficient, having regard to the nature of the obligation and the circumstances; failing that, the debtor may always perform within a reasonable time from the demand (article 1595). Ten days to pay an invoice is common. Ten days to finish weeks of construction work is not — and too short a period shortens nothing, it is simply replaced by a reasonable one.

Too short looks like bad faith. Too long gives time to arrange insolvency or move assets out of reach.

Sending it, and proving it

How you send it matters as much as what it says. You must be able to prove the letter was received and when: registered mail, a bailiff for significant files, or email where you keep the record.

Keep a copy of the letter, proof of sending, and proof of receipt. Those are the three items you will be asked for.

What comes next

If the deadline passes without a reply, the question becomes which forum. Below the small claims threshold — currently $15,000 (article 536 of the Code of Civil Procedure) — natural persons must act for themselves; a lawyer cannot act as mandatary at the hearing (article 542), though they can prepare you beforehand.

Above it, the case goes to the Court of Québec or the Superior Court depending on the amount claimed.

The first question stays the same: can this be resolved without a trial? The answer is yes more often than people expect.