Attorney Non-engagement Letter
(WA)

Summary

This template is a non-engagement letter that you may use to formally notify a potential client that you or your firm has declined representation in a proposed Washington civil action. This template includes practical guidance, drafting notes, and alternate and optional clauses. A prospective client is entitled to some, but not all, of the protections that apply to actual clients. See Wash. RPC 1.18. By expressly declining the representation in a non-engagement letter, you can help insulate yourself from later claims that the parties formed an attorney-client relationship, as well as from liability for malpractice or related claims. The letter should clearly: • Describe the circumstances of the consultation with the potential client • Recite the scope of the contemplated representation • Identify any relevant forthcoming deadlines of which you are aware (such as a statute of limitations or answer deadline) • State unambiguously that you are declining the representation Note that, even after declining the representation, you must preserve the confidentiality of any information that the former potential client revealed during the consultation. See Wash. RPC 1.18(b). If the potential client was referred to you, consider notifying the referring source of the non-engagement and thanking him or her for the referral. For more on evaluating new clients and forming an attorney-client relationship, see Commencing a Lawsuit: Initial Considerations (WA). For template engagement letters, see Attorney Engagement Letter and Fee Agreement (Contingency Fee Arrangement) (WA) and Attorney Engagement Letter and Fee Agreement (Hourly Fee Arrangement) (WA).