Limited Representation Agreement(Used in conjunction with Rule 1.2 the following form shall be sufficient to satisfy the rule. The authorization of this form shall not prevent the use of other forms consistent with this rule.)
To Be Executed in Duplicate
Date:__________, 20___________
1. The client,___________, retains the attorney, , to perform limited legal services in the following matter:___________v.___________
2. The client seeks the following services from the attorney (indicate by writing "yes" or "no"): a. ___________Legal advice: office visits, telephone calls, fax, mail, e-mail;b. ___________Advice about availability of alternative means to resolving the dispute, including mediation and arbitration;
c. ___________Evaluation of client self-diagnosis of the case and advising client about legal rights and responsibilities;
d. ___________Guidance and procedural information for filing or serving documents;e. ___________Review pleadings and other documents prepared by client;f. ___________Suggest documents to be prepared;g. ___________Draft pleadings, motions, and other documents;h. ___________Factual investigation: contacting witnesses, public record searches, in-depth interview of client;i. ___________Assistance with computer support programs;j. ___________Legal research and analysis;k. ___________Evaluate settlement options;l. ___________Discovery: interrogatories, depositions, requests for document production;m. ___________Planning for negotiations;n. ___________Planning for court appearances;o. ___________tandby telephone assistance during negotiations or settlement conferences;p. ___________Referring client to expert witnesses, special masters, or other counsel;q. ___________Counseling client about an appeal; r. ___________Procedural assistance with an appeal and assisting with substantive legal argument in an appeal;s. ___________Provide preventive planning and/or schedule legal check-ups:3. The client shall pay the attorney for those limited services as follows: a. Hourly Fee: The current hourly fee charged by the attorney or the attorney's law firm for services under this agreement are as follows:
iv. Law Clerk: Unless a different fee arrangement is established in clause b.) of this paragraph, the hourly fee shall be payable at the time of the service. Time will be charged in increments of one-tenth of an hour, rounded off for each particular activity to the nearest one-tenth of an hour.
b. Payment from Deposit: For a continuing consulting role, client will pay to attorney a deposit of $___________, to be received by attorney on or before___________, and to be applied against attorney fees and costs incurred by client. This amount will be deposited by attorney in attorney trust account. Client authorizes attorney to withdraw funds from the trust account to pay attorney fees and costs as they are incurred by client. The deposit is refundable. If, at the termination of services under this agreement, the total amount incurred by client for attorney fees and costs is less than the amount of the deposit, the difference will be refunded to client. Any balance due shall be paid within thirty days of the termination of services.
c. Costs: Client shall pay attorney out-of-pocket costs incurred in connection with this agreement, including long distance telephone and fax costs, photocopy expense and postage. All costs payable to third parties in connection with client case, including filing fees, investigation fees, deposition fees, and the like shall be paid directly by client. Attorney shall not advance costs to third parties on client behalf.
4. The client understands that the attorney will exercise his or her best judgment while performing the limited legal services set out above, but also recognizes: a. the attorney is not promising any particular outcome.b. the attorney has not made any independent investigation of the facts and is relying entirely on the client limited disclosure of the facts given the duration of the limited services provided, andc. the attorney has no further obligation to the client after completing the above described limited legal services unless and until both attorney and client enter into another written representation agreement.5. If any dispute between client and attorney arises under this agreement concerning the payment of fees, the client and attorney shall submit the dispute for fee arbitration in accordance with Rule 9(e)-(k) of the Maine Bar Rules. This arbitration shall be binding upon both parties to this agreement. WE HAVE EACH READ THE ABOVE AGREEMENT BEFORE SIGNING IT.
| _______________________________ | _______________________________ |
| Signature of client | Signature of attorney |
Me. R. Prof'l. Cond., Client-lawyer Relationship, r. 1.2, Limited Representation Agreement