Dystel, Goderich & Bourret Quits the AALA Over Editorial-Fee Rules

Why did Dystel, Goderich & Bourret leave the AALA? In a resignation statement on its website, the New York agency says the Association of American Literary Agents' revised Canon of Ethics "allows agents who have separate editorial businesses to charge editorial fees with the potential to then sign those authors as clients and retain those fees." The agency says it wrote to the AALA Ethics Committee, met with the full committee, and was told the Canon would not change.

What the new Canon says

The 2026 Canon of Ethics took effect on September 1, 2026. The sections that matter to querying authors:

• Section 8: still no reading fees. Members may not charge to evaluate queries, proposals or manuscripts for possible representation.
• Section 9: paid editing. A member may not charge clients for editing done to prepare a submission, and may not make representation conditional on buying editorial services. If a member is paid by a non-client for editing and later signs that author, what happens to the fees is "subject to mutual agreement," agreed when the editing starts.
• Sections 10 and 11: other paid services. Members may sell services like marketing or web design, but representation cannot depend on buying them, and non-clients must be told in writing that paying does not mean they will be represented. An agent may not answer a query by steering the author to paid services instead.
• Section 6: referral fees. Any referral payment must be disclosed to the author.

The AALA's summary of the update explains the change. Under the old Canon, a member who signed an author they had edited for pay had to refund those fees in full. The new text drops that requirement. Publishers Weekly covered the update in July and reported that the association has about 765 active members.

Why the agency objected

The agency's argument is about behavior, not the wording of the rules. "Whether or not an agent claims that paying for their editorial services will result in representation, we know many authors will pay for these services explicitly in the hopes of landing an agent," it writes. Its statement points readers to Jane Friedman's analysis of shifting agent business models. The agency says it shares the AALA's stated goals of diversifying agenting and supporting newer agents, but not this way of reaching them.

Questions to ask any agent now

1. Do you, or anyone at your agency, sell editing, coaching or marketing services?
2. If I buy those services, is that separate from any decision to represent me, in writing?
3. If you later sign me, what happens to fees I have already paid? (Under Section 9, that answer has to be agreed before the editing starts.)
4. Do you receive referral payments from any editor or service you recommend?

What it does NOT mean

AALA members still cannot charge reading fees, and a member still cannot require an author to buy editing as a condition of representation. What changed is that an agent may now keep editing fees from an author they go on to sign. Querying authors should know that before paying anyone.

Desk takeaway

Paying for editing is not a way to get an agent. If an agent offers paid services, ask the questions above and get the answers in writing before any money changes hands.

Sources

• Dystel, Goderich & Bourret: AALA Resignation Statement
• AALA: Canon of Ethics (2026)
• AALA: Key Updates and Highlights, 2026 Canon
• Publishers Weekly: Major AALA ethics update