Legal Question in Business Law in Virginia

Re: letter of intent to close business

Based on my experience with other clients, you're already on the right track. Send the letter and ask each for their consent; lay out the facts like how much of their deposit will be paid each month. If someone does not agree, and is aggressive about securing the return of the deposit, you may have to seek the protection of the bankruptcy court to keep creditors off your back until you can work the plan to repay each depositor.

Re: letter of intent to close business

I'd be happy to look over the details with you and guide a smooth landing. Because I do not maintain any office, I have very low rates, at $110 per hour.

To give more of an answer would require knowing more about your type of business, what obligations, real or imagined, your customers may be assuming you have based on the deposits, etc., etc.

You say that you were a sole proprietorship, which means that you would have no protection from liability. Therefore, I would recommend getting a release of liability from your clients as you close out their accounts, in the form of saying that everything has been concluded and there is nothing further that they expect from you (or else say what it is if you do). This is very simple to do legally, but perhaps very difficult to do in terms of talking people into signing.