When you decide to hire an attorney, one of the documents you’ll be asked to sign is the attorney-client contract.  Most contracts contain the same language and protections. It’s in your best interest to sign a contract and fee agreement with your attorney.

All contracts should outline some of the basic tenants of the attorney-client relationship, including the attorney’s fee.

The Attorney Fee Agreement

There are several types of contracts, with several different provisions, which you can sign. The most common contracts are contingency, hourly, and flat fee type contracts.

When you sign a contingency-based contracts, the attorney is sharing a portion of the risk, for a portion of the reward. This type of contract provides that "you don’t pay unless you win." Usually you can associate these types of contracts with car accidents, slip-and-fall injuries, traumatic injuries, worker’s compensation, and wrongful termination cases, to list a few. One advantage to the contingency-based fee agreement is that your attorney handles all of the costs associated with the claim, which saves you expenses up-front. Many people dislike these types of agreements because they believe an attorney’s share of the settlement might be too high.

Hourly-based fee agreements are most prevalent in criminal, civil defense, and family law cases. These agreements charge an hourly rate for an attorney’s time, and you’ll be expected to pay the billing invoice when it arrives. The problem with hourly agreements is that many clients find themselves in "sticker shock" when they receive a final bill for the attorney’s time. Most clients feel they have little or no control over the attorney’s time and expenses. Attorneys favor these types of agreement because sometimes, in some cases, it’s extremely difficult to predict the amount of time required to resolve a case.

More attorneys, especially those in small firms, are starting to regularly use flat-fee agreements in their cases. Attorneys using these types of agreements charge a flat-fee for the entire case or for portions of the case. Flat-fee agreements have been popular in DUI and traffic ticket cases for a long time, but now, they’re gaining in other areas too, like misdemeanor criminal defense, contracts and real estate, child custody, child support, and some family law cases. Flat fee agreements seem to benefit all parties equally. The attorney gets paid for his/her work (sometimes a big concern), and you know exactly what you will need to pay.

Basic Provisions of the Contract

Most likely, your attorney uses a contract that is fairly uniform throughout the legal profession. You attorney contract will have several paragraphs outlining each of your duties. Here are some of the provisions you may see in your attorney-client agreement:

1. Scope of representation – this paragraph will outline the type of matter and the scope of attorney’s representation in the matter.
2. Client’s duties – usually a short statement about being truthful and communicating with the attorney.
3. Statement of attorney’s duties – a short statement of the attorney’s duties outlined in the rules of professional conduct
4. Fee amount – this paragraph should outline the fee type (flat, contingent, hourly, etc.), and how the fee gets calculated
5. Expenses statement – this paragraph will discuss expenses or other costs, and outline when and how those get paid
6. Billing practices – this paragraph will outline the firm’s billing policy (usually in hourly cases)
7. Attorney lien – this paragraph will inform you that the attorney may take a lien against your settlement proceeds, which gets paid before any other distributions
8. Reasons for Withdrawal – this will advise you that the attorney may withdraw from representation if you’re not living up to your portions of the agreement
9. Guarantee disclaimer – no attorney will guarantee the outcome of the case. The attorney may make hopeful or ambitious statements regarding the outcome in the case, however, that’s not a guarantee that those events will occur

The attorney-client agreement is an important element of your relationship with the attorney. Signing the agreement gives you some protections, and ensures that your attorney will work with all diligence to reach a successful verdict. If you have questions, or need to modify some provisions in the agreement, you should discuss that with your attorney. Also, if you feel that your attorney isn’t living up to his/her portions of the agreement, you should discuss those issues. Finally, don’t forget to carefully read each provision of the agreement, and discuss those areas you’re not comfortable with.

Hopefully, by signing an agreement with your attorney, you’ll create a lasting professional relationship for this case, and years to follow.