agreement to provide legal services

  • What are my obligations, the attorney's obligations, and my cancellation rights?


  • First time user. I will return.


  • I am considering entering into the agreement. I thought that there might be some overarching laws governing these contracts in New Jersey


  • ernani-ga: There are rules of professional conduct under which any lawyer in the State of New Jersey must operate. These rules establish the basic obligations of an attorney towards their client, and cover both entering into an agreement to provide legal services, as well as the grounds and conditions for termination of such services. Generally, anything can be written into a contract between two consenting parties; however, if any part of the agreement violates the attorney's obligations under the Rules of Professional Conduct, then there is a very high likelihood that the agreement may be declared void if later contested on that point. Therefore, it is most definitely in the interests of the attorney to ensure that both your rights, and theirs, are protected in the agreement. Also generally speaking, you as the client will always have the right under the Rules of Professional Conduct to decide that you no longer want the services of the attorney. The most that the attorney can write into the agreement as an obligation to you, is that you pay a fee for services rendered up to the point of termination, and any reasonable accounting of services delivered by the attorney in order to allow another lawyer to take over representing you. Again, this is all covered by the Rules of Professional Conduct. I can provide you an Answer that links you to the Rules of Professional Conduct, and also provide links to resources available to you in the state of New Jersey to help you in understanding this further. Would this be acceptable as an Answer to you? Regards, aht-ga Google Answers Researcher


  • ernani-ga: Thanks for your Question about your obligations, your attorney's obligations, and your cancellation rights when entering into an agreement to provide legal services in New Jersey. The overarching rules under which this agreement must be formed, are the New Jersey Rules of Professional Conduct (RPC), also referred to as the Code of Professional Conduct. These are based on the national standards established by the American Bar Association, and are endorsed by the New Jersey Bar Association. You can find the RPC in Part I Appendices of the 'Rules Governing the Courts of the State of New Jersey', located at: http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/rules/rules_toc.htm The direct link is: RULES OF PROFESSIONAL CONDUCT (including amendments through Jan 1/04) http://www.judiciary.state.nj.us/rules/apprpc.htm -------------- Your Obligations Your obligations are quite simple, and completely dependent upon what you agree to in the actual agreement. This includes paying any upfront retainer required to reserve the lawyer's services, paying reasonable fees to compensate the lawyer and their staff for services rendered, treating the lawyer as your representative, and providing sufficient notice when you wish to terminate the agreement. The agreement cannot restrict you from cancelling the agreement whenever you desire, allowing for the notice period if any. This is covered under the lawyer's obligations below. -------------- The Attorney's Obligations While generally I advise that you read through all of the rules to familiarize yourself with what you can expect from your attorney, in particular note the follow rules: (as the Rules have not yet been updated in html format, you will need to click on the link above, and scroll to the various RPC sections) RPC 1.2. Scope of Representation and Allocation of Authority Between Client and Lawyer - paragraph d states that a lawyer may not knowingly assist in the preparation of a written instrument containing terms that the lawyer knows are expressly prohibited by law; this extends to the agreement to provide legal services itself RPC 1.4. Communication - paragraph d requires the lawyer to inform you if your expectations exceed their allowable actions under the Rules RPC 1.5. Fees RPC 1.6. Confidentiality of Information RPC 1.9 Duties to Former Clients - even after your agreement has ended, the lawyer will still have certain obligations towards you RPC 1.16. Declining or Terminating Representation - information regarding conditions under which the lawyer may terminate representation of a client; the client may end the representation at any time that the client wishes, and is only liable for services already rendered, and any services mutually agreed upon as required to properly transfer representation to another lawyer - if an advance retainer has been paid to the lawyer, the lawyer is obligated to refund any unearned amount RPC 4.1. Truthfulness in Statements to Others RPC 7.1. Communications Concerning a Lawyer?s Service - no false advertising; basically covers your discussions with the lawyer regarding his/her services prior to signing any agreement -------------- Cancelling the Agreement Again, you are best advised to read the actual agreement carefully before signing; however, generally the attorney is allowed to ask for a reasonable notice period, during which they are required (by RPC 1.16) to perform whatever services are necessary to properly transfer your representation to your new attorney. The attorney may initiate cancellation of the agreement if they find that continuing to represent you would cause them to violate the Rules of Professional Conduct. -------------- Additional Resources The New Jersey Bar Association has a related organization dedicated to fostering a good public understanding of the legal profession. This group, the New Jersey State Bar Foundation, provides a publication called "Choosing A Lawyer - A Client's Guide", which contains useful tips and pointers: http://www.njsbf.org/njsbf/publications/choosing.cfm They also have other publications and services that you may find of interest: Programs, Publications and Order Forms http://www.njsbf.org/njsbf/programs/index.cfm Consumer's Guide to New Jersey Law http://www.njsbf.org/njsbf/publications/guide.cfm Home Page http://www.njsbf.org/index.cfm --------------- I hope that this information is helpful to you. Please let me know, using the Request Clarification button above, if you need me to clarify any part of this Answer. Regards, aht-ga Google Answers Researcher


  • Yes, it would.


  • Are you referring to an agreement between you and your attorney, whereby the attorney gives you prior agreement to provide you with legal services in exchange for some form of consideration? If so, the terms of the agreement should already be specified in your written agreement. You are best advised to refer to those terms for the exact obligations and cancellation information, if any. This is essentially a contract between you and your attorney, so anything can be written into the contract. Can you clarify whether this agreement is already in place, or are you considering entering into such an agreement with an attorney? Regards, aht-ga Google Answers Researcher







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    January 9, 2009 | kpbk.com | edit

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