Opinion ID: 3065183
Heading Depth: 3
Heading Rank: 2

Heading: Breach of the Written Retainer Agreement

Text: Next, Fitzgerald alleges that Crockett violated the Retainer Agreement by failing to include Fitzgerald in the discussion with Nostro regarding costs. [4] To determine whether the contract was breached, we must turn to the language of the Retainer Agreement, which was incorporated into the SAC. See Sandy Valley Assocs. v. Sky Ranch Estate Owners Ass’n, 35 P.3d 964, 967 (Nev. 2001) (per curiam), receded from on different grounds by Horgan v. Felton, 170 P.3d 982, 988 (Nev. 2007) (“When a contract is clear on its face, it will be construed from the written language and enforced as written.”). Although the Retainer Agreement required the attorneys to jointly “determine” costs, it did not require that any and all communications with the client regarding costs include both attorneys. There is no specific provision requiring joint communications, nor can the explicit language be interpreted to so require. [5] Fitzgerald’s own behavior confirms our reading of the Retainer Agreement and what the parties understood it to require. The SAC alleges that Nostro called Crockett because Fitzgerald had earlier “request[ed] that Mrs. Nostro pay her share of the costs.” Fitzgerald did not include Crockett on this earlier call, thus violating Fitzgerald’s own interpretation of the Retainer Agreement. Accordingly, we affirm the dismissal of this claim.