The Rummy principle of drawing and discarding with a view to melding appears in Chinese card games at least in the early 19th century and perhaps as early as the 18th century and is, in fact, the essence of Mah-jong.
DEFINITION of 'Retainer Fee'. An upfront cost incurred by an individual in order to ensure the services of a consultant, freelancer, etc. A retainer fee is paid most commonly to individual third-parties who have been engaged by the payer to perform a service for them or on their behalf.These fees are almost always paid upfront and only ensure the commitment of the receiver, but does not guarantee an outcome or final product.ommunity Property. The most common form of retainer fees apply to lawyers, who in most cases require those seeking services to provide an upfront retainer fee, for example $500.
Retainer Law & Legal Definition. A retainer fee is the fee which detains an attorney for legal counsel. With this fee, the attorney is certain of the seriousness of your intentions and can take your case to heart.A retainer fee may be used to guarantee that a lawyer will be available to take a particular case and could mean that the lawyer would have to turn down other cases in order to remain available. case retainer is a nonrefundable fee that a client pays to a law office as an inducement for legal work to be performed for the client. What this really means is that the client is offering additional money to entice the attorney to take the case.