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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.
Providing a social security number is not legally required; however, DOJ procedures recommend providing the social security number on the Live Scan form. Further, many Live Scan vendors will refuse to submit your information without a social security number.
If you are uncomfortable with a Live Scan vendor retaining your social security number, we recommend redacting the number from the Live Scan form after the Live Scan vendor enters your information into the Live Scan software for transmission to the DOJ. The Live Scan vendor will then retain the redacted Live Scan form for their records. If a social security number is not provided, processing can be delayed.
No. Attorneys who live out-of-state can request hard copy fingerprint cards from the State Bar to be mailed to their preferred location. The cards can be completed at any fingerprint processing location within the jurisdiction in which they are located. For more information go to Fingerprinting Rule Requirements.
The State Bar will receive criminal record information from both the DOJ and the Federal Bureau of Investigation (FBI). This information specifically includes a summary of arrests, pretrial proceedings, the nature and disposition of criminal charges, sentencing, incarceration, court-ordered rehabilitation conditions, and release. The DOJ will send the State Bar notification of subsequent California arrests and the disposition of those arrests. At this time, the FBI will not send notification of out-of-state arrests to the State Bar.
State Bar investigations and inquiries are, by statute, confidential. The complaint becomes public when disciplinary charges are filed against an attorney in State Bar Court. By law, however, any other pending investigations involving the same attorney must remain confidential at that point. If it is determined that public protection is seriously at stake in a particular case, the Chief Trial Counsel does have the authority to publicly reveal a pending investigation.
Under limited circumstances, the Board of Trustees, or the Chief Trial Counsel and Chair of the Board of Trustees, may waive confidentiality, but any public disclosure will remain limited to confirming the fact of a complaint or investigation; a brief factual summary to identify the subject matter of the complaint or investigation; and the status of the complaint or investigation.
If criminal conduct is suspected, the State Bar may also refer the matter to a law enforcement agency for investigation and potential prosecution.
An attorney's compliance group never changes, even if a last name is changed. Attorneys always remain in the compliance group to which they originally were assigned. See Compliance Groups for more information.
For Trial Court: Two or more commissioners, at least one of whom is an attorney member; for Supreme and Appellate Courts: Three or more commissioners, at least one of whom is a public member.
A Certificate of Registration as a Law Corporation will be issued if the applicant is a professional corporation certified by the Secretary of State and each shareholder is an active member of the State Bar or licensed to practice in the jurisdiction or jurisdictions in which the person practices. For a complete list of requirements, read the Law Corporation Rules of the State Bar of California.
The State Bar was charged with administering the MCLE program by an act of the California Legislature which amended B&P code to require MCLE for attorneys. The Supreme Court also authorized the program by rule of court, giving the State Bar authority to administer the program and to place non-compliant members on administrative Inactive status. State Bar MCLE Rule 2.73 authorizes the state bar to require certificates of attendance.
All of the hours taken, whether participatory or self-study must be logged on the Online Summary Log. The activities reported must be approved self-study activities.
No, not at this time unless specifically requested. The State Bar is in the process of acknowledging receipts of OSAAC Certificates. Also keep in mind that many arbitrators and/or arbitral panels accept the listing of the State Bar's name, address, and declaration of payment on a proof of service as sufficient proof that the State Bar has been served.
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