A cease and desist letter is a formal written demand that someone stop a specific course of conduct, publishing false statements about you, contacting you after being told not to, using your photo or name in their advertising, and preserve the evidence of it. It is not a court order. Its power is notice: once it's received, continuing is a choice made with full knowledge of the law, and that changes everything about what a court does later. (Writing your own? What goes in a cease and desist letter. Received one? How to respond.)
Search for one and page one of Google is free templates with no signature behind them, reference definitions, and law firms that won't tell you the price until you've booked a consultation. This is the third option: a cease and desist drafted and signed by a New York attorney, screened honestly before you pay, genuine reviews, pure opinion, and protected speech are turned away under New York's anti-SLAPP law, with a refund, at a flat price printed on the page. Certified mail and email within 48 hours.
A cease and desist letter is private correspondence from you or your lawyer; nobody has to obey it, but ignoring it has consequences in any later case. A cease and desist order is issued by a court or a government agency and carries penalties for violation. A restraining order (in New York, an order of protection) is a court order in a criminal or family matter and is the right tool when you are in danger, call 911, not a letter service.
Through this service, $349 to $499 flat depending on the letter, with drafting, attorney review and signature, mailing, email delivery, and a PDF copy included. Hourly attorneys commonly charge several hundred dollars or more for a comparable letter; templates are free and unsigned. Every follow-on step, a follow-up letter, a settlement agreement, a written case assessment, has a fixed price you see before you decide.
Threats of violence, stalking, or domestic situations: call 911 and seek an order of protection. A genuine negative review of your business: protected speech in New York, and a letter can backfire under the anti-SLAPP law. A debt collector who won't stop calling: that letter is free and has automatic legal effect under the FDCPA, read the guide. Copied trademarks or pirated content: the platforms' free takedown tools come first, the DMCA takedown is free.
No. It is not a court order and cannot force anyone to act on its own. It creates notice, a dated evidence record, and litigation posture, which is why it is usually the first step, not the last.
Yes; no law requires a lawyer. The difference is what the reader believes is behind it. A template from you reads as a complaint. A letter from counsel, citing the statute and demanding evidence preservation, reads as the first page of a lawsuit.
No. It is private correspondence, not a court paper. We send it by mail with tracking and by email where an address is known, so delivery is documented either way.
Don't ignore it, and don't respond in anger. Read what a demand letter can and cannot do, then decide whether the conduct described is something you should stop, dispute, or take to a lawyer. Consultations on received letters are available through the firm.