Practice · Remote · Kerala & abroad
Legal drafting and contract review advocate in Ernakulam
I draft legal notices and replies, agreements, pleadings, affidavits and legal opinions, working remotely for clients in Kerala, elsewhere in India and abroad. Court documents follow the formats used before the High Court of Kerala and the courts at Ernakulam, and every draft is delivered in Word and searchable PDF.
Coverage
What does this area cover?
- Notices and replies — Demand notices, the s.138 NI Act cheque notice within 30 days of the dishonour information, s.80 CPC notices before suing the Government, SARFAESI s.13(3A) representations, cease-and-desist, tenancy, defamation and employment notices, and paragraph-wise replies that avoid fresh admissions.
- Agreements — drafting and review (contracts) — Service, vendor and SaaS agreements, data processing agreements under s.8(2) of the DPDP Act, NDAs drafted within s.27 of the Contract Act, employment and founders' agreements, private loan and settlement agreements, and the choice between a lease and a leave-and-licence.
- Pleadings, affidavits and opinions — Plaints under Order VII and written statements under Order VIII CPC, interlocutory and delay-condonation applications, Crl.M.C. under BNSS s.528, bail and anticipatory bail applications, BSA s.63 certificates, NCRP complaint drafts, s.9 arbitration petitions and reasoned legal opinions.
- Remote drafting workflow — Intake of facts and papers by email, a conflict check before instructions are accepted, a written scope letter, drafts in Word with a searchable PDF, e-signature under the IT Act where the document allows it, and notes on stamp duty and registration in Kerala.
Which documents cannot be e-signed, and what about stamp duty in Kerala?
Electronic signatures under ss.5 and 10A of the IT Act work for most commercial documents, including service, vendor, SaaS, NDA and employment agreements. The First Schedule to the Act excludes wills, trusts, powers of attorney, negotiable instruments other than cheques, and contracts for the sale or conveyance of immovable property. These are signed on paper, with attestation or notarisation where their own law requires it.
An e-signature does not settle stamp duty or registration. Duty on an instrument executed in Kerala is charged under the Kerala Stamp Act at the rate in force on the date of execution, and it is safer to stamp before signing: under s.34 of that Act, an unstamped instrument is generally admitted in evidence only after the duty and a penalty are paid. A lease from year to year, for a term exceeding one year or reserving a yearly rent can be made only by a registered instrument (Transfer of Property Act s.107), and a document for registration must be presented within four months of execution (Registration Act s.23). A leave-and-licence that is a lease in substance may be treated as one.
Which agreements are drafted and reviewed?
Agreements — drafting and review covers ten contract types: service agreements for freelancers and consultants, vendor agreements for goods or services, SaaS subscription and software agreements, data processing agreements under the DPDP Act, NDAs, employment contracts and appointment terms, founders’ agreements with equity vesting, private loan agreements, commercial leases or leave-and-licence agreements, and full-and-final settlement agreements. A draft can be prepared from scratch, or a contract the other side has sent can be reviewed clause by clause before it is signed.
Forums
Which court or authority hears it?
| Matter | Law | Forum | Time limit |
|---|---|---|---|
| Cheque bounce demand notice | NI Act s.138(b), s.142(1)(b) | Judicial Magistrate (complaint) | Notice within 30 days of dishonour information; complaint within one month after the 15-day payment period |
| Notice before suing the Government | CPC s.80 | Civil court | Suit only two months after delivery, unless leave under s.80(2) |
| Objection to a SARFAESI demand notice | SARFAESI Act s.13(2), s.13(3A) | Secured creditor; DRT under s.17 | Within the 60-day notice period; reasons for rejection within 15 days |
| Written statement in a civil suit | CPC Order VIII r.1 | Civil court; Commercial Court | 30 days from service; up to 90 days for recorded reasons; 120 days in commercial suits |
| Quash petition (Crl.M.C.) | BNSS s.528 | High Court of Kerala | No fixed limit |
| Interim relief before arbitration | Arbitration and Conciliation Act s.9 | Principal civil court; High Court in international commercial arbitration | Arbitration to begin within 90 days of the order |
| Lease for more than one year | Transfer of Property Act s.107; Registration Act ss.17, 23 | Sub-Registrar | Present for registration within 4 months of execution |
| Electronic record certificate | BSA s.63(4) | Trial court, filed with the record | Each time the record is tendered in evidence |
How it proceeds
How does a matter proceed?
- Facts and papers. You send the chronology and every document by email, in any order; gaps are listed back to you in writing before drafting starts.
- Conflict check and scope letter. The parties are checked against past and pending matters, and a scope letter fixes the deliverables, exclusions such as court fee and stamp duty, the number of revisions and the turnaround.
- Draft and confirmation. The first draft comes in Word for comments. You confirm names, dates and amounts in writing, because a draft never supplies facts the papers do not show.
- Final delivery. The final document is issued in Word and as a searchable, paginated PDF, with enclosures indexed and filings formatted to the registry's requirements at the High Court of Kerala or the trial court.
- Execution or filing. E-signature where the IT Act allows it; stamp paper, registration or notarisation where the document needs them; or filing before the court or authority concerned.
What should you keep ready?
- A dated chronology in your own words
- The contract, invoices, ledger or account statement the claim rests on
- Earlier notices, replies and messages with the other side, with proof of dispatch
- For cheque cases: the cheque, the bank return memo and the date you received it
- For court filings: FIR, charge sheet, orders and any earlier petitions in the matter
- Identity proof and, for a company or firm, the resolution or authority to act
- The outcome you want: payment, performance, withdrawal, settlement or a suit
General answers on formats and process follow; every draft is adapted to the facts and the forum. For a notice you have received, see how to respond to a legal notice; for cheque cases, the s.138 procedure guide; and the drafting matters index lists each document with its skeleton and enclosures.
FAQ
Common questions
Can you draft for me if I live outside Kerala or outside India?
When must a cheque bounce notice be sent?
Can an agreement be signed electronically in India?
Is a leave-and-licence agreement the same as a lease?
Does sending a legal notice stop the limitation period?
Will my documents stay confidential?
Matters
Every matter, by group
Each matter type with its law, forum, procedure, documents and limitation clock. All 41 on one page →
Related
Related practice areas
Notices and replies for SARFAESI and company matters can be drafted, but appearance before the DRT, DRAT, NCLT and NCLAT is referred to counsel who practise there.
About the advocate: Adv. K J Muhammed Aslam, enrolled with the Bar Council of Kerala; office at High Court Junction, Ernakulam.