- Jurisdiction
- Louisiana
Sought legal advice from an employment attorney regarding an employment agreement with a potential employer, specifically seeking how to modify a section of the agreement related to outside business interest. The attorney requested the agreed upon legal fee of $250 in advance of our meeting, that amount being his quoted hourly rate, which I paid.
We met via an online conference session, during which time he reviewed the agreement and provided specific verbiage for modifying the document. I was always taught to get everything in writing; so, the next day (it was near the end of the business day when we virtually met), I sent a confirmation email, containing the specific modification verbiage that the attorney had verbally provided. He responded to my email as follows: "Not the way I would word it. I will agree to provide further legal services to you at my hourly rate of $300.00 per hour."
Although the attorney is aware of the time-sensitive nature of the agreement--that my potential employer is waiting for the modified agreement as my start date is quickly approaching—he is not responded to my voice or email message asking to speak with him about the matter. In the meantime, the employer is calling and emailing me regarding the document and I believe I am at risk of the offer being rescinded.
Is it unreasonable for me to expect the modification verbiage for a legal contract to be provided in written form to ensure accuracy? Is it customary for an employment attorney to verbally provide such verbiage and consider it a separate (and more costly) legal service to verify it in writing? Please help ... What should I do?
We met via an online conference session, during which time he reviewed the agreement and provided specific verbiage for modifying the document. I was always taught to get everything in writing; so, the next day (it was near the end of the business day when we virtually met), I sent a confirmation email, containing the specific modification verbiage that the attorney had verbally provided. He responded to my email as follows: "Not the way I would word it. I will agree to provide further legal services to you at my hourly rate of $300.00 per hour."
Although the attorney is aware of the time-sensitive nature of the agreement--that my potential employer is waiting for the modified agreement as my start date is quickly approaching—he is not responded to my voice or email message asking to speak with him about the matter. In the meantime, the employer is calling and emailing me regarding the document and I believe I am at risk of the offer being rescinded.
Is it unreasonable for me to expect the modification verbiage for a legal contract to be provided in written form to ensure accuracy? Is it customary for an employment attorney to verbally provide such verbiage and consider it a separate (and more costly) legal service to verify it in writing? Please help ... What should I do?
