Terms of Engagement: Legal Strategy Session (Colorado)
1. Services Rendered. You will receive a consultation with an attorney from HKM Employment Attorneys LLP (“HKM”) or a HKM contract attorney. This service includes time spent by one of our attorneys reviewing documents, preparing for your session (including any necessary legal research), and meeting with you in person or by telephone for one (1) consultation that will last up to an hour. If the meeting with your attorney lasts for less than 60 minutes, you will not have a right to a second meeting.
You agree to pay the $475 fee by credit card for this service. When you pay, the charge will be deposited into HKM’s Colorado trust account. After the consultation has been completed, HKM will then transfer the money from the trust account to HKM’s operating account without further notice to you. This is a flat-fee agreement.
If you decide not to go through with the consultation before the consultation with your attorney, you will get fully reimbursed.
2. Flat Fee. This is a flat fee agreement. Client will pay HKM $475 for HKM’s performance of the services described in Section 5, below. Client understands that Client is NOT entering into an hourly fee arrangement. This means that HKM will devote such time to the representation as is necessary, but HKM’s fee will not be increased or decreased based upon the number of hours spent.
3. When Fee is Earned. The fee is earned after conclusion of the consultation described in Section 5 between the attorney and the client.
4. When Fee Is Payable. Client shall pay HKM in advance. Fees paid in advance shall be placed in HKM”s trust account and shall remain the property of Client until they are earned. When the fee or part of the fee is earned pursuant to this Agreement (that is, when the consultation between the lawyer and client occurs), it becomes the property of HKM. At this point, the fee will be transferred from HKM’s trust account to HKM’s operating account without any further notice to you.
5. Right to Terminate Representation and Fees on Termination. Client has the right to terminate the representation at any time and for any reason, and HKM may terminate the representation in accordance with Rule 1.16 of the Colorado Rules of Professional Conduct. If Client terminates the representation, for any reason, Client shall be entitled to a full refund of the flat fee.
6. Scope. The scope of our engagement will be to provide you with advice regarding the employment issue that you have specified in the description section of the Legal Strategy Session website. No other questions or issues are included or will be addressed.
The roughly one-hour LSS is necessarily limited in scope by the time and nature of a one-hour strategy session. This is an attorney client relationship and your communication with HKM attorneys is confidential and privileged. However, this is a limited scope attorney client relationship and we will not be your attorneys on this or any other matter once the consultation is complete. HKM agrees to provide up to one hour of consultation regarding general employment law matters, including, for example, reviewing an employment agreement or explaining the law around family leave or discrimination law. The scope of the LSS DOES NOT include representing you with your employer or any other third party, writing any letters or advocating for you with a third party. HKM does not provide tax, bankruptcy or ERISA advice. HKM will not review and provide advice related to any court filings you may have in litigation where you are otherwise representing yourself. Once the consultation is over HKM will not provide further advice or legal assistance on your matter and the attorney client relationship will terminate.
7. No Guarantee of Outcome. We do not and cannot guarantee the outcome or particular results of this or any other matter, and payment of our fees is not conditioned on any particular outcome or result.
8. Legal Service Provider. HKM Employment Attorneys LLP or an HKM contract attorney will provide you legal services. We or the HKM contract attorney do not provide any federal, state or local tax advice, nor does either entity provide any legal or non-legal services other than as expressly described above.
9. Identity of Client. You confirm that we are not being engaged by any members of your family or other individuals unless we separately and explicitly undertake such representation in writing. You also confirm that we will not and do not represent any entities, including but not limited to trusts, corporations or partnerships.
10. Client Obligations. To enable us to represent you effectively, you agree to cooperate in fully disclosing to us all facts and documents that you believe may be relevant to the matter we undertake or that we or the HKM contract attorney may request.
11. Termination of Services. Any representation pursuant to this Agreement will cease immediately and without further notice upon completion of the consultation with the attorney referenced in paragraph 1. HKM Employment Attorneys LLP and any HKM contract attorney will then close their files and will have no obligation whatsoever to provide advice, docket milestones, make filings, pursue appeals, take any other steps on your behalf, or monitor or advise you with respect to changes in the law or circumstances that might bear upon or adversely affect you.
12. Continued Legal Services After Consultation. This Agreement encompasses only the consultation described above, along with any preparation time by the attorney for that consultation. If you desire additional legal services after that, you may discuss possible further representation with the attorney providing your consultation during or after the consultation. You have no obligation of any kind to use the Legal Strategy Session service, HKM Employment Attorneys LLP, the HKM contract attorney, or any other specific firm or attorney, for additional legal services.
13. Arbitration and Waiver of Class Action. In the event a controversy arises with respect to this Agreement, with the exception of malpractice claims, jurisdiction and venue shall lie in Denver, Colorado. All such controversies shall be subject to binding arbitration before the AAA in Denver, Colorado. Any claim against either Affiliate Firm or HKM Employment Attorneys LLP based out of this Agreement must be brought in your individual capacity, and not as a plaintiff or class member in any purported class action. You expressly waive any ability to maintain a class action in any forum. The arbitrator shall not have authority to combine or aggregate similar claims or conduct any class action nor make an award to any person or entity not a party to the arbitration. You understand that you would have had a right to litigate through a court, to have a judge or jury decide your case, and to be a party to a class or representative action. However, you understand and choose to have any claims decided individually, through arbitration.
14. Other counsel. You may consult independent counsel to advise you regarding this Agreement, and we encourage you to do so if you like. You also have the right to consult with independent counsel at any time while we represent you or thereafter. However, we are not responsible for any advice that any independent counsel may or may not give you, and such consultation is entirely at your sole cost and expense.
15. Integration Clause. You agree that you have not been induced to sign this agreement by any promises, representations or other statements not expressly contained herein. This Agreement constitutes the entire agreement between you, HKM Employment Attorneys LLP, and the HKM contract attorney. No waiver, consent, modification or change of terms of this agreement shall bind any party unless in writing and signed by all parties.
16. Questions. You should not sign this agreement if you have any questions, concerns or doubts about it. If you have any questions, concerns or doubts, please contact Dan Kalish at [email protected] or 206-826-5354 prior to signing. If you have any questions, concerns or doubts after signing, please contact HKM Employment Attorneys LLP.