Five questions to answer before you sue anyone
Being right is not the same as being better off. A short, honest assessment before filing saves many businesses a great deal of money.
Sample article 4 min read
When someone has clearly wronged your business, the instinct to act is strong. But litigation is a commercial decision as much as a legal one, and it deserves the same scrutiny as any other significant expenditure.
1. Can you prove it?
Not "did it happen", but can you prove it happened, with documents and witnesses, to a court's standard. Contracts, invoices, delivery notes, emails, minutes, messages. A claim that everyone in your office knows is true but which rests on an undocumented conversation is harder than it feels.
2. Can the other side actually pay?
A judgment is not money. It is permission to pursue money. If the defendant has no assets, you can win comprehensively and recover nothing, having paid for the privilege. Consider what is known about their position before committing.
3. What does the contract say about disputes?
Many agreements require arbitration, or negotiation first, or a particular forum. Ignoring a dispute resolution clause can mean wasted costs and delay. Check it before doing anything else.
4. What is the total cost?
Legal fees are the visible cost. The invisible ones are often larger: management time gathering documents and preparing statements, strain on a commercial relationship, and distraction from running the business. Ask what the whole thing costs, not just the fee note.
5. What would a good outcome actually look like?
This is the question people skip, and the most important one. Do you want the money? An apology? A corrected record? A supplier to resume delivery? Some of these are better achieved by a firm letter or a negotiated settlement than by proceedings.
Once you can articulate the outcome you want, you can assess whether litigation is the best route to it, and you have a benchmark for any settlement offer that arrives later.
When litigation is the right answer
Sometimes it plainly is: where the sum is significant and recoverable, where the other side will not engage, or where you are defending and have no choice. The same preparation applies. Get the documents in order early, take honest advice on the merits, and understand the range of outcomes before you commit.
Before you do anything: preserve the record, avoid admissions and threats in writing, and take advice early.
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