/cpr-letter-drafter
- Identify whether a specific pre-action protocol applies (debt, professional negligence, housing disrepair, personal injury, construction, judicial review, etc.) or whether the default Practice Direction — Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols (PACC) applies.
- Apply the relevant timing, content, and disclosure requirements.
- Draft the LBC with the structure that protocol expects.
- Surface costs and CPR Part 36 consequences if the matter proceeds.
Letter Before Claim (England & Wales civil)
Purpose
The pre-action regime narrows issues, encourages settlement, and exposes parties who don't engage to costs sanctions. Non-compliance with PACC or a specific protocol can result in:
- Stay of proceedings until compliance.
- Adverse costs orders (CPR 44).
- Lost interest entitlement.
- Adverse inferences on conduct under CPR 44.2.
Choosing the framework
| Claim type | Protocol |
|---|---|
| Debt claim where debtor is an individual (incl. sole trader) | Pre-Action Protocol for Debt Claims (Oct 2017) |
| Professional negligence (solicitors, accountants, surveyors, etc.) | Pre-Action Protocol for Professional Negligence |
| Personal injury (≤ £25k portal; > £25k or non-portal) | Pre-Action Protocol for Personal Injury Claims |
| Housing disrepair | Pre-Action Protocol for Housing Disrepair Claims |
| Construction & Engineering | Pre-Action Protocol for Construction and Engineering Disputes |
| Judicial review | Pre-Action Protocol for Judicial Review |
| Defamation | Pre-Action Protocol for Defamation |
| Possession claims | Pre-Action Protocol for Possession Claims by Social Landlords (where applicable) |
| Anything else | Practice Direction on Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols (PACC) — default |
PACC core requirements (default)
- Concise summary of the claim.
- Basis on which the claim is made.
- Summary of facts.
- What the claimant wants.
- If money: how it is calculated.
- Reasonable period for response (typically 14 days for a simple claim, up to 3 months for a complex one).
- Documents the claimant relies on.
- An indication of an intention to use ADR if response is inadequate.
Debt Claims Protocol specifics
- Information sheet and reply form must accompany the letter.
- 30 days for the debtor to respond (longer than PACC default).
- Debtor's response form options: I dispute / I admit / I admit in part / I need time / I want ADR.
- Statement of account (if interest or charges added) must be provided.
- Cannot start proceedings until 30 days after the LBC (or longer if debtor reasonably needs time).
Professional Negligence Protocol specifics
- Preliminary notice (no detailed allegations) first. Recipient acknowledges within 21 days.
- Then Letter of Claim with detailed allegations.
- 3 months for the Letter of Response.
- Encourages mutual disclosure and joint experts.
Inputs
- Parties (claimant, defendant — Companies House for limited companies; trading name is not enough).
- Cause of action (contract, tort, statutory).
- Facts (chronology).
- Loss / remedy (with breakdown).
- Documents to disclose with the LBC.
- Whether ADR is proposed.
- Time pressure (limitation looming?).
Limitation gate
These are general defaults only — the periods below are starting points, not a settled limitation opinion. The accrual date and any exceptions must be checked by a solicitor for the specific facts.
- Most contract and tort claims: 6 years (Limitation Act 1980 s.5, s.2).
- Personal injury: 3 years (s.11).
- Latent damage: special rules (s.14A — 3 years from knowledge / 15-year long-stop).
- Judicial review: promptly and in any event within 3 months (CPR 54.5).
- Defamation: 1 year (s.4A).
Do not state a computed latest-issue date as fact. Exceptions and adjustments that move the date — s.32 deliberate concealment/fraud/mistake, s.14A date of knowledge, contractual variation of the limitation period, contribution claims (s.10), disability, acknowledgment/part payment (s.29) — must be checked by a solicitor before anyone relies on the date.
The LBC does not stop limitation. If limitation is near, issue protectively and consider a stay for pre-action compliance.
Surface the computed date as something to confirm, never assert: [SOLICITOR: confirm limitation date — primary limit appears to expire [date]; check accrual + exceptions; consider protective issue].
Workflow
Step 1 — Identify protocol
From the claim type. If unclear, default to PACC.
Step 2 — Limitation check
Surface the apparent latest issue date as a [SOLICITOR: confirm limitation date] marker — never as a settled fact. Flag the accrual assumption and any exception that could move it.
Step 3 — Draft per protocol
Use the relevant template.
Step 4 — Disclosure with LBC
Identify documents to enclose. Limited disclosure at LBC stage; full disclosure later.
Step 5 — ADR signal
PACC and most protocols require parties to consider ADR. Stating willingness in the LBC is standard. Refusal to engage in ADR can be costs-penalised (Halsey v Milton Keynes General NHS Trust [2004] EWCA Civ 576); the position was recalibrated in Churchill v Merthyr Tydfil County Borough Council [2023] EWCA Civ 1416, where the Court of Appeal held a court may lawfully stay proceedings to require parties to engage in ADR. Confirm the current ADR-costs position before relying on it.
Output template (PACC default)
Render the sections below as the finished letter — do not echo this template back, and do not leave bracketed placeholders unfilled. If a value is unknown, insert a clearly-marked [SOLICITOR: confirm X] rather than guessing. Any case-law or rule reference the model cannot pin to a section or citation should be marked [CITE NEEDED — authority] rather than stated as settled.
[Solicitor letterhead]
[Date]
[Defendant name] [Address]
BY EMAIL AND POST
Dear Sirs,
Re: [Claimant name] — Letter Before Claim
We act for [Claimant]. We are writing in accordance with the Practice Direction — Pre-Action Conduct and Protocols [or the relevant protocol].
Limitation notice: The primary limitation period for the claim described below appears to expire on [SOLICITOR: confirm limitation date].
1. The parties
[Claimant — full legal name, address. Defendant — full legal name, registered office (for companies).]
2. Facts
[Numbered chronology of material facts.]
3. The claim
[For each cause of action — contract, tort, statutory — state the basis and apply the facts to the elements.]
- Breach of contract: The contract was [terms / when formed]. The Defendant breached clause [X] by [act / omission]. The breach caused the loss particularised below.
- Negligence: The Defendant owed our client a duty of care because [...]. It breached that duty by [...]. The breach caused [...].
- Statutory: [Cite the statute and section, plead the elements, apply the facts.]
4. Loss and damage
[Particularised loss with computation.]
- Head 1: [...] £[X]
- Head 2: [...] £[Y]
- Interest under s.35A Senior Courts Act 1981 / s.69 County Courts Act 1984 (or contractual rate if applicable).
Total: £[Z]
5. Documents
Enclosed:
- [Documents the claimant relies on.]
Please provide:
- [Documents requested from the defendant.]
6. ADR
Our client is willing to consider ADR (including mediation). Please indicate within your response whether your client is willing to engage and, if so, your preferred form and timing.
7. Response
Please provide a Letter of Response within [21 days / per protocol]. The response should:
- Accept or deny the claim.
- State the facts and matters relied on.
- Identify documents relied on.
- Address the proposal on ADR.
8. Costs
If proceedings are issued and our client succeeds, costs will be sought under CPR Part 44. Our client reserves the right to make a CPR Part 36 offer, or a without-prejudice-save-as-to-costs (Calderbank v Calderbank [1976] Fam 93) offer, at any stage.
Yours faithfully,
[Signature]
Markers
[SOLICITOR: confirm limitation date]— the computed latest-issue date; always confirm, never assert.[PROTOCOL — [name] applies; consider preliminary notice / 30-day debt window / 3-month prof-neg response][SME VERIFY — protocol amendments]— protocol wording or timing the model is unsure is current.[CITE NEEDED — authority]— a case or rule referenced without a verified citation; check before relying on it.
What this skill does not do
- Issue the claim. The LBC is pre-action.
- Apply Scottish / NI procedure.
- Replace counsel's call on whether to issue protectively where limitation is tight.
- Guarantee or enforce compliance. The output is styled to follow the PACC or the relevant protocol; it does not certify that the letter is compliant. Verify the current protocol's content, timing, and enclosure requirements before sending.
- Settle the limitation position. The periods in this skill are general defaults; the accrual date and exceptions must be checked by a solicitor.
This is a draft for solicitor review, not legal advice. Verify every citation and the limitation position with counsel before the letter is sent. A solicitor with conduct of the matter — not this prompt — is responsible for compliance and for what goes out under the firm's name.
