General Letter of Instruction

A Letter of Instruction is a letter that gives another party order or authority to carry out specific instructions.

This can vary in formality, but examples include a person giving his/her stockbroker the authority to sell his/her shares in a company, a family giving instructions to a lawyer to sell a family land on their behalf, or a letter given by the administrators of an estate of a deceased person to a lawyer to obtain letters of administration.

This document is similar to the Power of Attorney as both are legal documents that grant a party the authority to carry out specific tasks. However, the Power of Attorney gives a person total power to act and make decisions on behalf of another. Also note that, unlike the letter of instruction, the Power of Attorney is a registrable instrument.

How to use this document

This document is used by any party who desires to instruct another to carry out activities for that party or on their behalf. It outlines the particulars of the sender and the recipient, the position of the recipient, and the instructions.

After filling out this form, the document should be printed, and the party sending the document should sign it. If the sender is a company or an organization, an authorized (that is a person in a position of authority such as a managing director, managing partner, etc.) representative of the sender must sign the document on its behalf. After signing the document, it must be sent to the recipient who must indicate acceptance to carry out the instructions.

The recipient should indicate acceptance either orally or by sending an Engagement Letter or any other letter or agreement indicating its acceptance to carry out the instructions.

If the party sending the document intends to hire the recipient as an independent contractor (which is a permanent position), the sender will also require a Service Agreement to define all the terms and conditions of their relationship.

Applicable law

The general rules of contract apply to this document.

How to modify the template

You fill out a form. The document is created before your eyes as you respond to the questions.

At the end, you receive it in Word and PDF formats. You can modify it and reuse it.