Arbitration Advisories

For information on how to request an arbitration advisory, please see below.

Advisory Number Title Date
2021-01 Disputes over Costs and Expenses 5/13/2021
2020-01 Awarding of Interest as Part of the Fee Arbitration Award - Supersedes Advisory 1993-01 11/19/2020
2016-02 Analysis of Potential Bill Padding and Other Billing Issues - Supersedes Advisory 2003-01 3/25/2016
2016-01 Statute of Limitations for Fee Arbitrations - Supersedes Advisory 2011-02; Revised May 20, 2016 3/25/2016
2015-02 The Arbitrator’s Role In Settlements and Stipulated Awards - Supersedes Advisories 1996-05 and 2009-01; Revised May 20, 2016 3/20/2015
2015-01 Disclosure Guidelines - Supersedes Arbitration Advisories 1994-01, 1995-01 and 1997-01 1/16/2015
2014-01 Amendment or Supplementation of Arbitration Awards - Supersedes Arbitration Advisory 2000-01 and 2003-02 7/25/2014
2012-03 Handling Legal Malpractice Claims and Ethical Issues During Arbitration 7/17/2012
2012-02 Arbitration Agreements - Supersedes 2004-01 2/1/2012
2012-01 Voidability of Fee Agreements - Supersedes 1996-04 2/1/2012
2011-02 Statute of Limitations for Fee Arbitrations - Supercedes 1996-02; Superseded by 2016-01 6/15/2011
2011-01 Enforcement of Non-Refundable Retainer Provisions - Supersedes 2001-02 1/28/2011
2010-01 Arbitration of Loan Modification Fee Disputes 2/11/2010
2009-01 The Arbitrator's Role in Accepting Settlement Agreements As Stipulated Awards - Superseded by 2015-02 7/8/2009
2008-02 Authority to Compel Compliance with Third-Party Subpoenas 5/25/2008
2008-01 Timing of Agreements to Binding Fee Arbitration (Updated July 25, 2014) 4/3/2008
2007-02 Preservation of Client Confidences in Arbitrations Involving Parties Other Than The Client 7/20/2007
2007-01 Arbitral Immunity (Updated July 25, 2014) 5/11/2007
2005-02 Resisting Attempts to Subpoena Fee Arbitrators or Fee Arbitration Documents 6/30/2005
2005-01 Jurisdiction of the Mandatory Fee Arbitration Program to Determine the Existence of an Attorney-Client Relationship 1/21/2005
2004-01 Arbitration Agreements (Superseded by 2012-02) 9/22/2004
2003-03 Awarding Program Filing Fees 10/20/2003
2003-02 The Amendment or Supplementation of Arbitration Awards - Supersedes 2000-01; Superseded by 2014-01 3/27/2003
2003-01 Detecting Attorney Bill Padding - Superseded by 2016-02 1/29/2003
2002-01 Imposition of Sanctions by Arbitrators in Conducting Fee Arbitration Matters 5/17/2002
2001-02 Enforcement of 'Non-Refundable' Retainer Provisions - Superseded by 2011-01 5/16/2001
2001-01 Impact of the Truth in Lending Act and Retain Installment Sales Act Upon Attorney-Client Fee Disputes 5/31/2001
2000-01 The Amendment or Supplementation of Arbitration Awards. - Superseded by 2014-01 11/3/2000
1998-03 Determination of a 'Reasonable' Fee - Updated March 20, 2015 6/23/1998
1998-02 Required Accommodations for Fee Arbitration Participants with Disabilities 3/20/1998
1998-01 Impact of Arbitration Clauses in Fee Agreements Upon Client's Right to Mandatory Fee Arbitration 1/16/1998
1997-03 Fee Arbitration Issues Involving Contingency Fees 8/22/1997
1997-02 Handling a Request for Arbitration When a Party Files for Bankruptcy 8/22/1997
1997-01 Disclosures To Be Made by Arbitrators to Parties - Superseded by 2015-01 7/18/1997
1996-05 Arbitrator's Role in Settlements at Time of Hearing - Superseded by 2015-02 12/13/1996
1996-04 Voidability of Fee Agreements - Superseded by 2012-01 9/13/1996
1996-03 Burden of Proof in Fee Arbitrations 6/7/1996
1996-02 Statute of Limitations for Fee Arbitrations - Superseded by 2011-02 6/7/1996
1996-01 Records Retention 4/26/1996
1995-02 Standards for Attorney Fee Billing Statements 6/9/1995
1995-01 Disclosure Required of Fee Arbitrators by CCP 1281 - Superseded by 2015-01 4/28/1995
1994-04 Identification of 'Individual Responsible Attorney' in Fee Arbitration Awards 8/19/1994
1994-03 Avoiding Arbitrator Bias 7/15/1994
1994-02 Jurisdiction to Arbitrate Court-Ordered Fees 4/22/1994
1994-01 Avoiding Arbitrator and Administrator Bias - Superseded by 2015-01 1/7/1994
1993-02 Standard of Review in Fee Disputes Where There Is a Written Fee Agreement 11/23/1993
1993-01 Awards of Interest by the Arbitrator 7/30/1993

Arbitration Advisory Requests

You may submit a request for an arbitration advisory to the Committee on Professional Responsibility and Conduct (COPRAC) for their consideration using the online form. The Committee exercises discretion on whether to issue arbitration advisories in response to requests. 

In order to submit your request, we will need the following information: (1) your name; (2) name of the local bar association fee arbitration program you are affiliated with (if any); (3) your contact information; (4) any supporting documents you may have, such as the copy of a particular case or arbitration award; and (5) a clear statement of hypothetical facts posing the issue for the committee to analyze.

The process for issuance of an arbitration advisory is lengthy, requiring circulation of the proposed advisory for a 90-day public comment period, followed by the Board of Trustees' consideration of a request to approve the advisory for publication on the State Bar’s website. These review periods follow a lengthy deliberative process, in which the committee proceeds to draft a well-reasoned advisory that is acceptable to a majority of the committee members, and helpful to the largest possible number of arbitrators.