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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.
The State Bar also accredits the following organizations, which certify attorneys in eleven additional practice areas:
American Board of Certification
National Board of Trial Advocacy
American Board of Professional Liability Attorneys
National Association of Counsel for Children
IOLTA is a primary source of funding for civil legal aid in California. Civil legal aid provides free legal services to those who would not otherwise be able to afford them. On average low-income Californians report experiencing twice as many civil legal problems in a year as nonindigent Californians. Approximately 20 percent of Californians live in poverty and rely on these services for their civil legal needs.
Currently, almost 100 organizations receive IOLTA grants from the State Bar. In 2018 the State Bar distributed over $51 million to support civil legal aid. (This includes other funds besides IOLTA, such as the Equal Access Fund and the Greg E. Knoll Justice Gap Fund.) Top areas where these organizations provided legal assistance included housing, immigration, and family law/domestic violence cases. In 2017, almost 5,000 families were able to stay in their homes, over $16 million in unpaid wages were recovered, and over 2,000 individuals were able to obtain or maintain their health insurance as a result of civil legal aid.
Sources: State Bar of California, The California Justice Gap Study: Measuring the Unmet Civil Legal Needs of Californians (2019); State Bar of California, Making a Difference: California Legal Aid Impact Report (January 2019), pp. 2, 4, 8, 10.
The deadline to show proof of compliance is stated on your MCLE Audit Notice. If you fail to submit adequate proof of compliance by the deadline, you will be assessed a $103 penalty for late compliance, and you will receive a Non-Compliance Notice that gives you 60 days to comply. If you do not submit adequate proof of compliance and pay the late fee within that time period, you will be placed on Not Eligible to Practice status until you submit the required proof of compliance, pay the $103 non-compliance fee, and pay an additional $308 reinstatement fee.
If you are unable to locate your certificates or proof of course completion, please contact your provider immediately to request a copy of the attendance certificate or a printout. Many providers are happy to assist. However, please note that California MCLE course providers are not required to issue replacement certificates. The State Bar only mandates that they provide the original certificate received upon course completion.
Applications are available in the Applicant Portal. You must create an account using your name, email address, and password to gain access to the Applicant Portal.
No. Once you have submitted your fingerprints through a Live Scan vendor and received an ATI number, you should retain a copy of the Live Scan form for your records.
Upon submission of the ATI number on the Proof of Live Scan Submission page, the fingerprinting requirements status will be updated.
Where you bank makes a difference! You can help generate more money for civil legal aid for low-income Californians by establishing and maintaining your IOLTA accounts at Leadership Banks, financial institutions that commit to offering favorable interest rates. Banking with a Leadership Bank is a great way for you to help support access to justice for low-income individuals in our state.
The State Bar conducts an annual Attorney Census to gather demographic and employment data from the state’s licensees. The Attorney Census contains questions on demographic characteristics, including race, ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, disability, and veteran’s status. For more information, visit the Frequently Asked Questions about the Attorney Census.
Go to Certificate of Completion, enter your Tester ID, then click the Next button. The MCLE Self-Study Certificate of Completion, Test, and Answers will display. To print only your certificate of completion, please choose the "Printer friendly version - MCLE certificate only" link at the top of that webpage.
If you paid $25 for a particular test, you can take only that test. If you wish to take a different test, you must pay $25 for that article and test. If you wish a refund, please contact us at feedback@calbar.ca.gov. Be sure to close and restart your web browser before trying to take a new test.
You may request a refund within 60 days of your purchase as long as the course has not been accessed. Refunds for courses with technical issues will be prioritized. Processing may take up to 90 days. Credit card fees are nonrefundable. To request a refund, email elearning@calbar.ca.gov. Please provide your name, your bar number, the name of the course you are requesting a refund for, the reason for the refund request, the date of purchase, and a copy of the transaction receipt.
There is no set time for Support LAP. It is completely voluntary. Participants can enroll, withdraw, and re-enroll whenever they want to.
The program is generally designed so that a client may require their attorney to participate in fee arbitration. However, an attorney may require the client to participate if the client and attorney have a signed agreement to submit fee disputes to a mandatory fee arbitration program. In general, binding arbitration agreements are not enforceable if they were entered into before the dispute arose.
If an attorney claims you owe an outstanding balance of fees or costs, they must provide to you a “Notice of Client’s Right to Fee Arbitration” form approved by the State Bar before or at the time of filing a lawsuit or other proceeding to collect the amount. After receiving the notice, you have 30 days to request mandatory fee arbitration through the appropriate local bar association program. If the local bar association does not provide mandatory fee arbitration, you may request it from the State Bar. If you fail to request mandatory fee arbitration within 30 days of receipt of the notice, you will have waived your right to arbitration, and the attorney may take legal action to collect the fees or costs.
After you submit a request for arbitration form and filing fee to the appropriate program, the attorney may then respond to your request. A neutral arbitrator, or a panel of three arbitrators, depending on the amount in dispute, will be assigned to listen to both you and the attorney, and decide the appropriate fees. The arbitrator may decide that you paid the attorney more than is appropriate, and you may be awarded a refund of attorney’s fees or costs already paid.
Alternatively, the arbitrator may decide that you must pay the attorney any unpaid fees, or that neither of you owe anything further. In no event will an arbitrator order you to pay more than what you agreed to in your fee agreement.
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