Become an Agent of Your Client

The Agency agreement allows you to collect money for your client.

You must send your client an agency agreement. This agreement will allow you to collect the unclaimed money for your client, deduct the finder's fee percentage, and pass the net proceeds to your client.

An agency agreement may seem out of the ordinary. But, you've probably worked with a real estate agent. When you signed a contract, you made the real estate sales person your agent, able to help you in selling or buying a home.

This is really no different. Your client is merely allowing you to act for her in obtaining her money.

How do you do this?

There are standard clauses that are required to establish a legal agency agreement.

Basic Agency Agreements

Scope of the Representation -- You must define what the client will allow you to do. This will include collecting their money from the source you have identified.
Term of the Agreement -- You must define the length of time the agreement is in force. This will usually be for the time it takes to provide your client the net proceeds from a single source of unclaimed money.
The Agent's Accounts -- You must describe how money belonging to the client will be handled. You have a trust relationship with the client and should not deposit her money in your personal accounts.
Warranties -- You must define what you will do for your client. This includes locating and obtaining the money from a specific account.
Commission -- You must define how you will be paid. For our purposes, this will be a percentage of the gross amount of money located.

This legalize may sound pretty technical. It's really not that complicated.

The follow is an example of an agency document you can start with. This is an agreement from your client to your organization.

Please keep in mind that you should consult with a local attorney to ensure that the wording is in accord with your state's legal requirements.

To: Resource Location Services
123 Second Avenue
OurCity, St 02468

This agreement is between myself, Mrs. Jane Smith of 123 Main Street, City, St. 12345 and Resource Location Services, 123 Second Avenue, OurCity, St 02468.
I agree to allow Resource Location Services to act as my agent in the collection of certain assets in which I may have an interest. These assets are identified by Resource Location Services as "Account 012345".
Upon receipt of this signed agreement, Resource Location Services will complete their research on this claim, inform me of the nature of the claim, and proceed to collect the assets that may be due me.
In consideration for their work in researching and collecting this asset, I do hereby assign to Resource Location Services an amount equal to twenty percent (20%) of the gross amount of the claim.
Assets collected by Resource Location Services under this claim will be deposited in their agency account. Within 7 days of the payee's check clearing, Resource Location Services will send me a check for the net amount due me.
I will be responsible for no other costs related to the collection of this claim. I will not advance to Resource Location Services any money for efforts related to this claim. Compensation to Resource Location Services is limited to 20% of the assets recovered under this claim.
Resource Location Services is authorized to retain an attorney at no further cost to me to assist in collecting all assets due me related to this claim. No attorney's fees will be deducted from the amount due me under this contract.
If the research on the claim indicates that I have no assets due me, I will not owe Research Location Services any fee and Resource Location Services will not invoice me for their efforts.
This agreement is in full force an effect until the assets due me under this claim have been received.
Dated this 13th day of September, 2000.
________________________________________________
(Signature)
________________________________________________
(Name -- Please Print)
________________________________________________
(Street Address)
________________________________________________
(City, State ZIP)

You may actually need to hire an attorney. This will be necessary to process, for example, probate. In this case it will be necessary to have the client agree to be represented by that particular attorney. In this way, she will have difficulty selecting another attorney to try to get the money on her own.