Cease and Desist Letter
Formally demand that harassment, collection calls, or false statements stop — in writing, with proof.
A cease and desist letter is a written demand that someone stop doing something. It is not a court order, and nobody goes to jail for ignoring one. What it does is remove every excuse: once it is delivered, the other side cannot claim they did not know the conduct was unwelcome or unlawful.
That matters later. Judges awarding damages, issuing protective orders, or assessing statutory penalties look for the moment the conduct became knowing. A dated letter with a delivery receipt is that moment, which is why debt collection harassment claims so often start here.
Send this letter when
- A debt collector keeps calling after you told them to stop.
- Someone is contacting you repeatedly after you asked them not to.
- A collector is calling your employer or your relatives about your debt.
- Someone is spreading false statements about you.
- You want a documented warning on the record before going to court.
What your letter includes
- A clear, dated demand that the conduct stop
- A factual record of what happened and when
- The federal and state statutes the conduct may violate
- A response deadline and a statement of what happens next
- Certified mail proof that the recipient was warned
Cease and desist letters by state
Deadlines, penalties and required notice periods differ by state. Pick yours to get the rules that apply to you.
- Alabama
- Alaska
- Arizona
- Arkansas
- California
- Colorado
- Connecticut
- Delaware
- District of Columbia
- Florida
- Georgia
- Hawaii
- Idaho
- Illinois
- Indiana
- Iowa
- Kansas
- Kentucky
- Louisiana
- Maine
- Maryland
- Massachusetts
- Michigan
- Minnesota
- Mississippi
- Missouri
- Montana
- Nebraska
- Nevada
- New Hampshire
- New Jersey
- New Mexico
- New York
- North Carolina
- North Dakota
- Ohio
- Oklahoma
- Oregon
- Pennsylvania
- Rhode Island
- South Carolina
- South Dakota
- Tennessee
- Texas
- Utah
- Vermont
- Virginia
- Washington
- West Virginia
- Wisconsin
- Wyoming
Consumer protection law in Alabama, state by state
Every figure below links to the full rules for that state, with the statute cited.
| State | Consumer protection law in Alabama | Statute |
|---|---|---|
| Alabama | Alabama Deceptive Trade Practices Act (Ala. Code § 8-19-1 et seq.) | Ala. Code § 8-19-1 et seq. |
| Alaska | Alaska Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Act (Alaska Stat. § 45.50.471) | Alaska Stat. § 45.50.471 |
| Arizona | Arizona Consumer Fraud Act (A.R.S. § 44-1521 et seq.) | A.R.S. § 44-1521 et seq. |
| Arkansas | Arkansas Deceptive Trade Practices Act (Ark. Code § 4-88-101 et seq.) | Ark. Code § 4-88-101 et seq. |
| California | California Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act (Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200; Cal. Civ. Code § 1750) | Cal. Bus. & Prof. Code § 17200; Cal. Civ. Code § 1750 |
| Colorado | Colorado Consumer Protection Act (C.R.S. § 6-1-101 et seq.) | C.R.S. § 6-1-101 et seq. |
| Connecticut | Connecticut Unfair Trade Practices Act (Conn. Gen. Stat. § 42-110a et seq.) | Conn. Gen. Stat. § 42-110a et seq. |
| Delaware | Delaware Consumer Fraud Act (6 Del. C. § 2511 et seq.) | 6 Del. C. § 2511 et seq. |
| District of Columbia | D.C. Consumer Protection Procedures Act (D.C. Code § 28-3901 et seq.) | D.C. Code § 28-3901 et seq. |
| Florida | Florida Deceptive and Unfair Trade Practices Act (Fla. Stat. § 501.201 et seq.) | Fla. Stat. § 501.201 et seq. |
| Georgia | Georgia Fair Business Practices Act (O.C.G.A. § 10-1-390 et seq.) | O.C.G.A. § 10-1-390 et seq. |
| Hawaii | Hawaii unfair and deceptive practices law (Haw. Rev. Stat. § 480-2) | Haw. Rev. Stat. § 480-2 |
| Idaho | Idaho Consumer Protection Act (Idaho Code § 48-601 et seq.) | Idaho Code § 48-601 et seq. |
| Illinois | Illinois Consumer Fraud and Deceptive Business Practices Act (815 ILCS 505) | 815 ILCS 505 |
| Indiana | Indiana Deceptive Consumer Sales Act (Ind. Code § 24-5-0.5 et seq.) | Ind. Code § 24-5-0.5 et seq. |
| Iowa | Iowa Consumer Fraud Act (Iowa Code § 714.16) | Iowa Code § 714.16 |
| Kansas | Kansas Consumer Protection Act (K.S.A. § 50-623 et seq.) | K.S.A. § 50-623 et seq. |
| Kentucky | Kentucky Consumer Protection Act (Ky. Rev. Stat. § 367.110 et seq.) | Ky. Rev. Stat. § 367.110 et seq. |
| Louisiana | Louisiana Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (La. Rev. Stat. § 51:1401 et seq.) | La. Rev. Stat. § 51:1401 et seq. |
| Maine | Maine Unfair Trade Practices Act (5 M.R.S. § 205-A et seq.) | 5 M.R.S. § 205-A et seq. |
| Maryland | Maryland Consumer Protection Act (Md. Code, Com. Law § 13-101 et seq.) | Md. Code, Com. Law § 13-101 et seq. |
| Massachusetts | Massachusetts Consumer Protection Act (M.G.L. c. 93A) | M.G.L. c. 93A |
| Michigan | Michigan Consumer Protection Act (Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.901 et seq.) | Mich. Comp. Laws § 445.901 et seq. |
| Minnesota | Minnesota Prevention of Consumer Fraud Act (Minn. Stat. § 325F.69) | Minn. Stat. § 325F.69 |
| Mississippi | Mississippi Consumer Protection Act (Miss. Code § 75-24-1 et seq.) | Miss. Code § 75-24-1 et seq. |
| Missouri | Missouri Merchandising Practices Act (Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.010 et seq.) | Mo. Rev. Stat. § 407.010 et seq. |
| Montana | Montana Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Act (Mont. Code § 30-14-101 et seq.) | Mont. Code § 30-14-101 et seq. |
| Nebraska | Nebraska Consumer Protection Act (Neb. Rev. Stat. § 59-1601 et seq.) | Neb. Rev. Stat. § 59-1601 et seq. |
| Nevada | Nevada Deceptive Trade Practices Act (Nev. Rev. Stat. § 598.0903 et seq.) | Nev. Rev. Stat. § 598.0903 et seq. |
| New Hampshire | New Hampshire Consumer Protection Act (N.H. Rev. Stat. ch. 358-A) | N.H. Rev. Stat. ch. 358-A |
| New Jersey | New Jersey Consumer Fraud Act (N.J. Stat. § 56:8-1 et seq.) | N.J. Stat. § 56:8-1 et seq. |
| New Mexico | New Mexico Unfair Practices Act (N.M. Stat. § 57-12-1 et seq.) | N.M. Stat. § 57-12-1 et seq. |
| New York | New York deceptive acts and practices law (N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law §§ 349, 350) | N.Y. Gen. Bus. Law §§ 349, 350 |
| North Carolina | North Carolina Unfair and Deceptive Trade Practices Act (N.C. Gen. Stat. § 75-1.1) | N.C. Gen. Stat. § 75-1.1 |
| North Dakota | North Dakota consumer fraud law (N.D. Cent. Code § 51-15-01 et seq.) | N.D. Cent. Code § 51-15-01 et seq. |
| Ohio | Ohio Consumer Sales Practices Act (Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1345) | Ohio Rev. Code ch. 1345 |
| Oklahoma | Oklahoma Consumer Protection Act (Okla. Stat. tit. 15 § 751 et seq.) | Okla. Stat. tit. 15 § 751 et seq. |
| Oregon | Oregon Unlawful Trade Practices Act (Or. Rev. Stat. § 646.605 et seq.) | Or. Rev. Stat. § 646.605 et seq. |
| Pennsylvania | Pennsylvania Unfair Trade Practices and Consumer Protection Law (73 P.S. § 201-1 et seq.) | 73 P.S. § 201-1 et seq. |
| Rhode Island | Rhode Island Deceptive Trade Practices Act (R.I. Gen. Laws § 6-13.1-1 et seq.) | R.I. Gen. Laws § 6-13.1-1 et seq. |
| South Carolina | South Carolina Unfair Trade Practices Act (S.C. Code § 39-5-10 et seq.) | S.C. Code § 39-5-10 et seq. |
| South Dakota | South Dakota Deceptive Trade Practices law (S.D. Codified Laws § 37-24-1 et seq.) | S.D. Codified Laws § 37-24-1 et seq. |
| Tennessee | Tennessee Consumer Protection Act (Tenn. Code § 47-18-101 et seq.) | Tenn. Code § 47-18-101 et seq. |
| Texas | Texas Deceptive Trade Practices–Consumer Protection Act (Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 17.41 et seq.) | Tex. Bus. & Com. Code § 17.41 et seq. |
| Utah | Utah Consumer Sales Practices Act (Utah Code § 13-11-1 et seq.) | Utah Code § 13-11-1 et seq. |
| Vermont | Vermont Consumer Protection Act (9 V.S.A. § 2451 et seq.) | 9 V.S.A. § 2451 et seq. |
| Virginia | Virginia Consumer Protection Act (Va. Code § 59.1-196 et seq.) | Va. Code § 59.1-196 et seq. |
| Washington | Washington Consumer Protection Act (Rev. Code Wash. ch. 19.86) | Rev. Code Wash. ch. 19.86 |
| West Virginia | West Virginia Consumer Credit and Protection Act (W. Va. Code § 46A-6-101 et seq.) | W. Va. Code § 46A-6-101 et seq. |
| Wisconsin | Wisconsin deceptive trade practices law (Wis. Stat. § 100.18) | Wis. Stat. § 100.18 |
| Wyoming | Wyoming Consumer Protection Act (Wyo. Stat. § 40-12-101 et seq.) | Wyo. Stat. § 40-12-101 et seq. |
How it works
- 1
Answer a few questions
Names, addresses, dates and amounts. We assemble the letter and cite the statute that applies in your state.
- 2
Review and edit
Read the finished letter, change any wording you like, and see exactly what will be printed.
- 3
We print and mail it
Your letter is printed, folded, stamped and dropped in the mail — certified, if you want proof of delivery.
Why we recommend certified mail
A cease and desist letter is only worth what you can prove was delivered. Under 15 U.S.C. § 1692c(c) a collector's duty to stop begins when they receive your notice — the return receipt is the date.
Other letters we generate
Security Deposit Demand Letter
Demand the return of a security deposit your landlord is holding past the legal deadline.
Debt Validation Letter
Make a debt collector prove the debt is yours — and stop collection until they do.
Notice to Vacate Letter
Give your landlord proper written notice that you are moving out — on your state's timeline.
This is not legal advice.
SendPaperMail is not a law firm, does not provide legal advice, and is not a substitute for an attorney. Our generators assemble a document from the information you enter and mail it for you. The statutes cited on these pages are provided for general information, may have been amended, and may not apply to your situation — city and county ordinances are frequently stricter than state law. If your matter is contested, involves a significant amount of money, or has a filing deadline, talk to a licensed attorney in your state.