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Both arbitration and mediation involve a neutral third party. In arbitration, the arbitrator hears evidence and arguments, and then issues a decision that may be binding or nonbinding. In mediation, the mediator helps the parties reach their own voluntary agreement.
No. Both sides must agree to mediation. The State Bar will notify the opposing party if mediation is requested.
If you received a Notice of Client’s Right to Fee Arbitration form from the attorney, you have 30 days from the date you received it to submit your arbitration request form to the program. You must also submit your arbitration request if you first wish to mediate the fee dispute.
If you do not file the request form within 30 days of receiving the notice, you will lose your right to arbitrate your fee dispute. A telephone call or letter to the program requesting arbitration will not protect that right. You must be sure that the request form is complete and submitted with any required filing fee.
If the attorney has already filed a lawsuit against you for unpaid fees, you may elect either to respond to the lawsuit or request fee arbitration. If you file a response to the lawsuit, you will lose your right to arbitrate the fee dispute. If you request arbitration, the lawsuit will be stayed, but you should file the appropriate notice of automatic stay with the court. To preserve your right to arbitrate, you should file a request for arbitration promptly.
Your request for mediation is part of the State Bar request for arbitration, so it will follow the same timelines listed above.
No. The mediator will not decide any issues related to attorney misconduct and/or malpractice and has no authority to make any determinations regarding the attorney’s conduct or to discipline attorneys for professional misconduct.
If you wish to file a disciplinary complaint with the State Bar of California about your attorney’s conduct, you may do so online. Please keep in mind that a discipline complaint and a request to arbitrate and mediate a fee dispute are separate matters. Filing a complaint may result in disciplinary action against the attorney; however, the result may or may not require the attorney to refund fees.
To help you decide whether to file a complaint, visit the Want to File a Complaint webpage.
If you think you have a separate claim for legal malpractice, you should seek legal counsel.
If you are seeking a refund of attorney’s fees that you have already paid, you may request fee mediation as a preliminary option along with arbitration as long as you are still within the legal time limit for filing a lawsuit about the fee dispute. To preserve your right to arbitrate, and to potentially mediate a fee dispute, you should file a request for arbitration promptly.
For disputes filed with the State Bar, simply check the box agreeing to mediate on the request for fee arbitration form. Some local bar associations offer fee mediation in addition to fee arbitration. Find local fee arbitration programs.
Yes. Mediation is voluntary and either side can decline to mediate. All parties must agree for a mediation to go forward.
Mediations will take place by videoconference. Usually, the parties are in separate areas to start but may be brought together later in the process. The mediator will typically meet separately with one party, and then the other, to understand their perspectives and to identify areas of potential agreement. This “shuttle diplomacy” will take place until an agreement is reached, or until it is clear to the mediator that it is not possible for the parties to reach an agreement. If an agreement is reached, it will be memorialized in a writing called a settlement agreement.
You may be represented by an attorney, but it is not required. You can arrange for an interpreter to attend the mediation with you.
The mediation is confidential. This means that nothing said in a mediation can be used as evidence in any later proceeding by any party at the mediation.
The decision to agree to mediate is entirely up to you, but the attorney will also have to agree in order for the mediation to occur.
If the dispute is eligible to be filed with the State Bar for fee arbitration, you will have the option of agreeing to mediation as part of the request for arbitration. Some local bars also offer fee mediation, but most local programs only offer fee arbitration.
When you complete the Request for Arbitration with the State Bar, you will be asked to indicate whether you are interested in mediating the fee dispute. Once your request is accepted, including receipt of payment of the applicable fee arbitration filing fee, the State Bar will serve your request to the opposing party. As part of the opposing party’s written reply to the request, they will indicate whether they agree to mediate the fee dispute prior to arbitration.
If both parties agree to mediation, a mediator will be assigned to help you and attorney try to reach a settlement of your dispute, and you will receive further instructions at that time.
You have two options: (1) You can return to California and follow the instructions for being re-fingerprinted by a Live Scan vendor using the same OATI number; OR (2) You can order fingerprint cards and follow the instructions for out-of-state attorneys or out-of-country attorneys.
The Handbook on Client Trust Accounting for California Attorneys is the primary resource. The State Bar also maintains an online list of resources on client trust accounting as well as information about IOLTA (Interest on Lawyer Trust Accounts) requirements. If you have questions, please fill out the Licensee Records and Compliance Inquiry Form.
The IOLTA Program is a department within the State Bar of California that administers IOLTA accounts, as well as two other sources of funding for free civil legal aid to low-income and indigent people: the California Equal Access Fund and the Greg E. Knoll Justice Gap Fund.
The State Bar initiated the IOLTA Program due to the lack of resources available for indigent clients who are in need of civil legal services. The substantial amount of money the program generates makes it possible for hundreds of thousands of these people to get the legal help that they need every year.
A 21-member Legal Services Trust Fund Commission appointed by the State Bar's Board of Trustees and the Chief Justice (on behalf of the Judicial Council of California) oversees the Trust Fund Program. Two-thirds of the commission members are attorneys and one-third are public members.
At least two of the 21 members must be "indigent persons" as defined by law. Three judges serve as non-voting advisors to the commission.
The Commission determines the eligibility of programs applying for funding, reviews recipients' budgets for compliance with the law, and monitors and evaluates the activities of programs receiving Trust Fund Program grants.
Yes. You must enter each course included in the package into the online summary log and provide a copy of any proof of completion it may have included (for example, a log and witness statement, if the MCLE bundle include them.)
If there is a written fee agreement, the arbitrator may consider whether the agreement is valid and whether the terms of the agreement (for example, the hourly fee) should be upheld. You should review the fee agreement before the hearing to determine if it answers your questions about the lawyer's charges. If the arbitrator determines the agreement to be valid and that you understood the agreement, the arbitrator will generally use the terms of the agreement as a basis for making the decision.
The arbitrator also looks at the lawyer's "performance" in deciding the amount of the fee. For example, did the lawyer spend too much time on a specific task, or did the lawyer make mistakes that required extra time to fix? You should review the lawyer's bills and performance and decide whether, based on these factors, you believe the fee is too high. You should be prepared to point out specific items that support your belief
First, you should decide whether the witnesses have important information related directly to your fee dispute with the lawyer. For example, if the witness was with you when you and the lawyer made or changed your agreement, then the witness may have important information relevant to your fee dispute, and you might want to have that person available to testify at the hearing. You should tell the arbitrator and the attorney whose fees you are disputing that you expect to call witnesses and arrange your presentation so that the witnesses can be easily included.
If you have an important witness who does not want to come to the hearing, you may be able to order that person to attend with a subpoena. You should contact the administrator of the fee arbitration program to find out how this is done. You should also contact the administrator if you have any problems scheduling a witness. While it is always better to bring witnesses to the hearing, you may present their testimony and evidence in writing instead. It is up to the arbitrator to decide how much weight to give a witness's testimony.
You should expect to receive an award in the mail about 30 days after the hearing. Please don't call the local program or State Bar because the award will be sent to you automatically.
Rule 8.3 states that a lawyer shall report “without undue delay.” Rule 8.3 comment [3] provides that the lawyer must report as soon as the lawyer reasonably believes that reporting will not cause material prejudice or damage to the interests of a client of the lawyer or a client of the lawyer’s firm. The Comment also provides that the lawyer should consider other applicable rules, such as rules 1.4 (the duty to communicate); 1.7(b) (material limitation conflict); 5.1 (responsibilities of managerial and supervisorial lawyers); and 5.2 (responsibilities of a subordinate lawyer).
A lawyer can file a complaint anonymously. If a lawyer submits a complaint through the online tool, the lawyer will receive a reference number that they could later use to prove they made a submission. However, if a lawyer submits a complaint using other methods (such as an email from an anonymous email address or by sending the complaint through the mail), there will be limited proof of a submission.
The online complaint tool has required fields in which the complainant must enter data to progress. However, the complainant can input “anonymous” and other nonidentifying information in the required fields.
If a lawyer submits an “anonymous” complaint but includes information that would identify the complainant, it is possible that that information will ultimately be available to the respondent.
There are three types of reports:
All New Attorney Training Program courses qualify for participatory credit.
No. Pursuant to rule 9.40 of the California Rules of Court, the application must include the out-of-state attorney's residence and office address.
Activities that qualify for general MCLE credit must: (1) relate to legal subjects that are directly relevant to California attorneys, and (2) offer current, significant educational, professional, or practical content with the specific objective of increasing each participant’s professional competency as an attorney. Programs created primarily for nonattorney audiences (for example, general public, clients, or business staff) do not qualify and will not be approved for general MCLE credit. More on Standards for MCLE activity Approval.
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