letters
Letters are formal written documents used to communicate legal requests, confer authority, or provide official notice. The term appears in various contexts and may refer either to court-issued documents or to formal communications between parties.
Common examples include: letters of administration, which authorize a person to administer an estate; letters testamentary, which authorize an executor to act on behalf of a decedent’s estate; letters rogatory, which are formal requests by a court in one country for judicial assistance from a court in another country; and demand letters, which request that a party take or cease a particular action.
[Last reviewed in May of 2026 by the Wex Definitions Team]
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