Section 138 legal notice
Drafting and serving the mandatory 30-day demand notice under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act after cheque dishonour. Prerequisite before filing a case.
A demand notice under Section 138 of the Negotiable Instruments Act, 1881 is the statutory step that must precede any criminal complaint for cheque dishonour. The cheque must have been presented within its three-month validity, returned by the bank with a memo (insufficient funds, account closed, stop payment for an enforceable debt, signature mismatch where the underlying liability stands), and the payee must dispatch a written demand within 30 days of receiving that memo, failing which the cause of action is permanently lost.
The notice must demand exactly the cheque amount — not the amount plus interest, not a rounded-up figure, not penal charges as the principal demand. Interest, costs, or other claims may be mentioned separately, but the 15-day ultimatum has to attach exclusively to the face value of the cheque (Suman Sethi v. Ajay K. Churiwal, (2000) 2 SCC 380). The notice is sent by registered post AD (or other recognised mode) to the drawer's correct address. The cause of action crystallises on Day 16 from the drawer's receipt if payment is not made.
Across Uttarakhand, the territorial jurisdiction for the eventual complaint is fixed by Section 142(2) of the Act post the 2015 amendment: for an account-payee cheque, the court where the payee's bank branch is situated; for a cheque encashed over the counter, the court where the drawee bank's branch is. For payees banking in Dehradun, Haridwar, Roorkee, Haldwani, Nainital, or any other district headquarters, this anchors the future complaint to the local Court of Judicial Magistrate of First Class. The notice itself can be issued from anywhere — typically through counsel's office in the same city — and is dispatched to the drawer's address by registered post AD with proof of dispatch retained.
NyaySetu Law's Section 138 demand notice service drafts the notice with the cheque particulars, dishonour ground, exact amount demanded, and 15-day ultimatum, and identifies the registered-post route. You retain the postal receipts and acknowledgement for use in the eventual complaint.