One of my clients is threatening to take me to court over a business dispute. What's the best way I should respond to/defend a potential lawsuit?

There's a dispute over an IT consulting contract my company performed. The client is alleging we did not deliver all the work to the specifications requested (we did). They are arguing they should be entitled to a refund of 30% of the total fee, since the last contract milestone was allegedly not properly delivered. We disagreed and refused the refund. They have sent a lawyer's letter and are threatening to take the matter to court. Any advice would be appreciated.

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Nathaniel

02 Oct 2021

I plucked these points from this guide on how to fight lawsuits in Singapore:

Is the lawyer's letter a "Letter of Demand" or a "Writ of Summons"? If it's the former, then formal legal proceedings have not been initiated. Quickly contact a qualified lawyer to advise you on the strength of your case. Your lawyer will advise you on the best method to defend yourself.

If your letter was a "Writ of Summons", then you only have 7 days to respond. If you don't respond within 7 days, the other party can file for summary judgement, which means you will lose automatically, and a judge will decide on how you need to compensate the other party. If it's a Writ of Summons, lawyer up ASAP!

In future, consider taking on Professional Indemnity Insurance ($100,000 to $10 million coverage, from $42/month). This pays for your legal fees and damages/settlements, so you don't have to worry about the cost of lawsuits like these.

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