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Lending or borrowing money

Money moving between people or businesses on agreed terms, and what happens if the repayments stop.

See where this can lead

A loan is a few simple things in a fixed order: the terms in writing, what the money is repaid against, sometimes something held as security, and a plan for the day repayments stop. Most trouble comes from a step that was skipped, usually the first.

What this can involve

What it can involve

Does one of these sound like yours?

You don’t need to know the legal term for it. Start with what actually happened.

  1. Putting the loan in writingWho is lending what to whom, and the promise to repay it.
  2. Repayment termsHow much is repaid and when, set out so both sides can check it.
  3. What a lender may ask forShowing what you own and owe, when someone is deciding whether to lend.
  4. Security over propertyWhen a loan is backed by something that can be claimed if it is not repaid, and releasing that claim afterwards.
  5. When the repayments stopAsking for the money back in writing, or agreeing a different arrangement.
  6. Reading terms you've been offeredUnderstanding what a lender's terms commit you to before you agree to them.

None of these quite right? You don’t have to pick one.

More than one area

One situation, more than one area of law.

Lending or borrowing money rarely sits in a single category. These are the areas it most often reaches, and why. You don’t have to pick one — the matter decides, not you.

Each one is a real page you can read before deciding anything.

Most oftenBanking & FinanceThe arrangement itself, its terms and its obligations.

And often also

Documents

You may also need a document.

The documents that carry a loan from the agreement to the demand letter are in the ready-to-use catalogue. They are also available alongside a conversation, if the arrangement is not a standard one.

Ready-to-Use Documents

Browse all loan documents

  • Loans & IOUs

    Personal loan agreements

    Put money lent between people on clear terms.

    View document

  • Loans & IOUs

    Promissory notes

    A written promise to repay a sum of money.

    View document

  • Demands, Debt & Disputes

    Demand letters

    Formally ask for payment or action before going further.

    View document

  • Demands, Debt & Disputes

    Debt Settlement Agreement

    Agree the terms on which a debt will be settled.

    View document

Not sure where to start

Still not sure this is your situation?

Then don't pick one. Describe what's happening in your own words and we'll work out what it involves — and which areas of law it reaches.

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Other situations

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Questions

Questions people ask at this point.

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Tell us what’s happening. We’ll take it from there.

You don't need to know which area of law it is, or what the next step should be. Describe the situation and we'll work out what it involves.

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