I Received a Civil Demand Letter. What Should I Do?

If you are accused of stealing an item from a store, you may receive a letter claiming that you owe the store money. This letter is called a “civil demand letter.”

This type of letter often demands that you pay far more than the cost of the item you attempted to steal or you could face criminal charges or a suit in small claims court. So what do you do if you receive a civil demand letter?

Petty Theft (California Penal Code Section 490.5)

Often, civil demand letters cite California Penal Code Section 490.5, which states that you may be sued in small claims court for between $50 and $500 if you attempted to steal an item. If that product can no longer be sold, you could also be liable for the cost of the item.1 The law also awards costs of the suit, which usually means the filing fee of $30 with the court for a claim of less than $1,500.

So, for example, if you stole a bottle of soda from a store, the store could sue you for:

• Up to $500
• A filing fee, and
• The cost of replacing the soda.

All told, the suit could be worth a total of roughly $533.

Notice that the statute says nothing about payment of the merchant’s legal fees. The demand letter might threaten to make you pay for the cost of their lawyer’s work in preparing this case. However, small claims court does not allow for parties to bring in their own lawyer. Furthermore, under California law, if the statute under which you are sued (or a contract, if there is one) does not provide for attorney fees to the winner of the case, the opposing party cannot be awarded them.

So What Should I Do if I Received a Civil Demand Letter?

If you received a civil demand letter, it is important that you do not ignore it. Department stores often take people to small claims court if they do not pay the requested amount. However, this does not mean that you should simply pay and take no further action.

What you should do after receiving a letter like this is contact an experienced criminal defense attorney. Your attorney can attempt to negotiate with the company that issued the civil demand letter so that you may not have to pay the full amount. Our law firm may be able to protect you from facing criminal charges of theft if you act immediately.

The Attorneys at Wallin & Klarich are Here to Help

We understand that receiving a civil demand letter can be stressful. It may seem like the easiest thing to do would be to pay the money they’re asking for. However, doing so could incriminate yourself and waste money unnecessarily.

What you should do is contact an attorney who you can trust. At Wallin & Klarich, we have more than 40 years of experience defending clients against accusations of theft. Contact us today for a free, no obligation phone consultation.

With offices in Orange County, Los Angeles, San Bernardino, Riverside, Ventura, Victorville, West Covina, San Diego, Torrance and Sherman Oaks, there is a Wallin & Klarich attorney experienced in criminal defense near you no matter where you work or live.

Call us today at (877) 4-NO-JAIL or (877) 466-5245 for a free phone consultation. We will be there when you call.

^{1. See Cal. Pen. Code § 490.5, subd. (b) and (c). href="#ref1">↩}