Clarifications To Get Before Signing A Retainer Agreement

27 December 2014 by Jonathan Phillips

Before you sign a retainer agreement with your attorney, you should read the document and understand the contents of the document you want to sign. Specifically, you should get clarifications on the:

Retainer Size

The first thing you should know is how much your chosen lawyer is asking for a retainer. Just because you heard that a certain attorney charges X dollars as a retainer does not mean that it is the amount he or she will charge you. Some lawyers have variable retainers depending on the type of case. For example, a divorce case involving sizable assets in different countries may attract a higher retainer fee than one in which the major asset is the money in a local bank account.

Retainer Use

The other thing you should know is the intended use of the retainer. Is it:

• For a specific period (say for one month)?
• A deposit for his or her future payments?
• For a specific case?

If the retainer fee doesn't cover the entire project/case, then the agreement should also specify what it is to be used for. For example, your attorney can use it to pay out-of-pocket expenses (such as photocopying fees) or deduct his or her bills as the case progresses.

Refund Policy

Confirm whether the retainer is refundable, and situations that may render it non-refundable. Some, but not all, family attorneys refund portions of the retainer fee that they do not use. Ideally, the attorney should refund to you the portion of the retainer that he or she neither uses as his or her fees nor to settle the out-of-pocket expenses.

Additional Funds

Finally, you should know how the attorney is planning to handle unexpected needs for funds should such needs arise. If the retainer does not cover all the anticipated services, or if further services arise as the case progresses, you do not want the lack of money to derail your case. Is the attorney to send you a bill after executing the said service or should he or she ask you for a check first?

Some attorneys ask for a rainy-day retainer to be placed in a special account for such emergencies. If that is the case, then you (the client and the attorney) should agree on what constitutes an emergency to avoid future conflicts. Most clients will agree that this is the best route to take.

These are some of the major things you should know before signing a retainer. Ask a lawyer (such as The Law Office Of James R. Kennedy Jr.) to explain any part of the agreement you may not understand.

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