Write a non-engagement letter declining a prospective client
A courteous letter that clearly declines representation, warns about deadlines without giving advice, and protects the firm from implied-relationship claims.
The prompt
Write a non-engagement (declination) letter for my law firm.
Prospective client name and contact: [DETAILS]
How they contacted us and what we discussed: [e.g. "30-minute free consultation on March 3"]
Reason we are declining (internal only): [conflict / outside our practice / capacity / merits / fee]
Documents they gave us: [LIST - and whether we are returning them]
Referral options we can share: [e.g. "state bar lawyer referral service" - or "none"]
The letter must:
- State plainly, in the first paragraph, that the firm is not representing them in this matter and will take no action on their behalf.
- Not state or imply any opinion about the merits or the value of their claim. Do not reveal the internal reason if it is a conflict or a merits judgment; a neutral reason is fine.
- Warn that legal claims are subject to time limits that may be short and could already be running, and urge them to consult another lawyer promptly. Do not calculate or name a deadline.
- Confirm the return of any original documents and that we have kept no originals [CONFIRM].
- Keep a respectful, brief tone (under 250 words).
Return: the letter, a one-paragraph email version for clients who contacted us online, and a short note on how to log this declination in our intake system (date sent, delivery method, proof of delivery). Have an attorney review the final letter.
Highlighted [brackets] are blanks to replace with your own details.
Fill in the blanks and use this promptMore Legal & Compliance prompts
What to fill in
- DETAILS
- e.g. "30-minute free consultation on March 3"
- conflict / outside our practice / capacity / merits / fee
- LIST - and whether we are returning them
- e.g. "state bar lawyer referral service" - or "none"
- CONFIRM
How this prompt is built
This prompt follows the Few-Shot structure (Few-shot prompting). A few-shot prompt includes one or more worked examples of the input and the output you want, so the model can copy the pattern instead of guessing it.
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