Are threats of court standard in solicitors letters?

[NCtoProtectTheInnocent]

Brief background as I don't want to be too identifiable!

I have received a letter from the exes solicitor about contact for our DC. It is a different firm than he has previously used. They presumably have no knowledge of previous solicitors contact between us and are going by what he has told them. I left the ex several years ago due to abuse, taking the DC with me. He has seen them a handful of times since then, always supervised access in a public place for our protection. He has phone contact with them most weeks, he only has a mobile number for me again for protection. The DC are now of an age where they are more able to make their own decision about having contact with him so I go with their wishes. Until they were old enough to decide for themselves, i have maintained contact and offered far more than was taken up. There is no formal court agreement in place for contact and the ex doesn't have PR.

The letter I received this morning requests mutual negotiation for contact and says if this fails or is refused, court proceedings will be started and that I have 14 days to reply. Now I am not especially concerned about the letter, as it is very similar to ones i have had in the past which have always been resolved swiftly when replied to by my own solicitor with a statement of facts. I assume that is why the exes letters come from a different solicitor each time, but I don't recall any past letters going straight for the threat of my being taken to court unless the (numerous) demands in the letter are met so I wondered if there has been a change in standard practise, if there has been some recent change in contact law that I am unaware of or if this particular solicitor is just a bit heavy handed and goes for the scare tactics?

It isn't convenient for me to dash off to the solicitors again just now, so I am also wondering if this is just something I can ignore until I can give it my full attention or if there will be legal implications if I don't respond within the set time frame?

Any help, advice or wake up calls gratefully accepted.

it does sound like a standard letter that is ebing sent as he is thinking of getting court ordered contact - - so it is negotiate or court proceeedings will begin.
depends if you happy to have it go to court and get CAFCASS invovled etc due to past issues or if you be happy to attend mediation with him intiially .

depends what he is asking for i guess in terms of contact if its what the Dc want etc?

It may just be that this letter was worded diffrently from past ones (all on the same subject, never follow up on) then, rather than an escalation. I do intend to reply at some point, but it isn't really convenient just now to have to schedule in another trip to the solicitor and draft what is essentially the same reply as before thoug so I am hoping it is something that can be out off for a while.

Mediation isn't really practical as we live at opposite sides of the country now and to be honest, I don't think it would ever reach the stage of court. I may well be wrong on that but I have been advised in the past that since I have sent a solicitors letter offering a certain amount of contact and the ex has consistently failed to take it up, that it wouldn't get to court anyway as the family courts are overworked as it is and would take a dim view of someone trying to force extra contact when they have not maintained the offer they currently have.

The DC aren't at all bothered about having contact and tend to agree to arrangements made for it because they think they should, rather than because they want to if you see what I mean?

you could just reply referring to previous correspondence?

presume that if he does make applicaiton to court then it would be listed for a directions/first/conciliation hearing which you would have to attend....