Client Engagement Letter for Legal Services in Zimbabwe

There is no standard Client Engagement Letter for Legal Services in Zimbabwe provided for by the Law Society of Zimbabwe or in any By-Laws or Regulations. Be that as it may, a Client Engagement Letter for Legal Services is simply the standard terms of engagement for legal services, including the scope of work, client’s obligations, law firm obligations, fees etc.

The scope of a legal practitioner’s mandate or that of a law firm engaged to provide legal services in Zimbabwe, depends on the express, tacit or implied terms out the Client Letter of Engagement or Contract of Mandate. see Joubert Scholtz Inc & Others v Elandsfontein Beverage Marketing (Pty) Ltd [2012] 3 All SA 24 (SCA).

A client engagement letter for legal services is simply a contract of mandate which governs the legal relationship between a legal practitioner and a client. This mandate places a fiduciary obligation on the part of the legal practitioner. see Mort N.O. v Henry Shields-Chiat 2001 (1) SA 464 (C). It is common cause that a legal practitioner is a profession, who renders a professional service i.e., legal services to a client. Therefore, a client engagement letter for legal services in Zimbabwe is an agreement of mandatum or lastgeving. In such a contract, the legal practitioner or law firm, as mandatory (mandatarius), undertakes to perform legal work on behalf of a client, who is the mandator. see Ritenote Printers (Pvt) Ltd & Another v A. Adam & Company (Pvt) Ltd SC 26-16.