Before You File
Before you file a complaint
There are a variety of ways to address problems with an attorney—before filing a complaint with the State Bar.
- Call the State Bar’s Contact Center if you have any questions at 800-843-9053 (in California) or 213-765-1200 (outside California).
- If you need help re-establishing communication with your attorney or retrieving files from a former attorney, you can request assistance through the Attorney-Client Bridge Program.
Request arbitration for a high bill
If you believe that your attorney’s bill is too high, speak with your attorney and make your concerns clear. You may find that the case was more complicated and took more time than you realized. Or your attorney may agree that a mistake was made on the bill.
If you can’t resolve the problem directly with your attorney, you can request Mandatory Fee Arbitration (MFA). Fee arbitration is an informal, confidential, and low-cost option for resolving fee disputes between lawyers and their clients. Mandatory fee arbitration is required for the lawyer if the client requests arbitration. The State Bar has a list of fee arbitration programs at local bar associations.
If there is no local bar association in your area or your local bar association will not take on a fee arbitration in your area, contact the State Bar’s Fee Arbitration office at 415-538-2020.
Getting files from your attorney
The Rules of Professional Conduct require attorneys to return all client papers and property to which the client is entitled. The complete original file belongs to the client, and the attorney may copy the file at his or her own expense.
However, if you have an agreement with the attorney relating to copying expenses, you may be responsible for such costs. This is only true when you are seeking copies of the file while you are still being represented by the attorney. You should make a formal request to the attorney in writing. If the attorney fails to respond, this letter can be used as evidence for future State Bar purposes.
If you need help retrieving files from a former attorney, you can request assistance through the Attorney-Client Bridge Program.
Problems communicating with your attorney
If you are having difficulty communicating with your attorney, document your calls to your attorney. Each time you call or email the attorney’s office and leave a message, make a record of it.
If you don’t receive a return call within a reasonable period of time, write a letter to the attorney, preferably with return receipt requested, requesting the attorney to contact you within a specified (reasonable) period of time.
If the attorney still doesn’t respond, this letter can be used as evidence for future State Bar purposes. Keep all records of your attempts at contact.
If you need help re-establishing communication with your attorney, you can request assistance through the Attorney-Client Bridge Program.
Find a new attorney
If all attempts fail and you do file a complaint, you may need to find a new attorney.
The State Bar can’t give you legal advice or refer you to an attorney. But if you need to hire an attorney to handle your case or want to consult an attorney on a potential case, a certified Lawyer Referral Service can put you in touch with a lawyer who can handle your problem. If your particular problem can be resolved without a lawyer, the referral service will tell you how to get the help you need.
Be sure that the service is certified by the State Bar. Lawyer Referral Services that are certified follow certain rules that will protect you.
A certified Lawyer Referral Service may direct you to lawyers with experience in certain areas of the law such as bankruptcy, criminal, probate, landlord-tenant, family law, and other areas. Certification rules also encourage Lawyer Referral Services to offer free and low-cost legal help as well as lawyers who speak languages in addition to English.
People who need a lawyer can use our Lawyer Referral Services directory to search for a lawyer by county, area of law, and languages spoken.
For a list of lawyers certified as specialists by the State Bar in one of nine areas, use our Attorney Search tool.
Related links
Having a fee dispute with your attorney?