FEE ARBITRATION
Disputes Over Legal Bills
The San Diego County Bar Association offers an Attorney/Client Fee Dispute Program. This fee arbitration program is an informal, confidential, impartial, and lower cost avenue for resolving fee disputes between lawyers and clients. A lawyer must participate in this fee arbitration program if the client pursues fee arbitration. However, a lawyer cannot compel a client to participate in this arbitration unless there is a Mandatory Arbitration Clause in the initial engagement letter.
The San Diego County Bar Association's fee dispute arbitration program will consider cases only if the attorney involved in the dispute has an office in San Diego County or if the majority of services were performed in San Diego County.
The filing fee for the fee dispute arbitration program is 5% of the amount in dispute - not less than seventy–five dollars ($75.00) and not more that seven thousand five hundred dollars ($7,500.00). The filing fee includes up to three hours of arbitration time from our panel of experts. If more time is needed, there will be an additional fee, though most cases are completed within three hours.
See the right side of this page for Frequently Asked Questions.
Prior to submitting your application please download and review the Local Rules of Arbitration. Download the Fee Arbitration Local Rules of Operation »
Instructions
I. Review, complete and submit the following:
- Complete Arbitration Packet.
- (If you are an attorney initiating fee arbitration, use the "Attorney Request for Arbitration of a Fee Dispute" packet).
You should also review: Preparing for the Fee Arbitration Hearing and Business and Professions Code Article 13 Arbitration of Attorneys' Fees.
- Submit Notice of Automatic Stay of Proceedings (click here for instructions and click here to obtain the form from the court.) Complete only if the attorney has already filed a lawsuit to collect fees from the client.
- Complete Application for Filing Fee/Waiver Reduction, if applicable. Filing fees may be waived or reduced based on an applicant's inability to pay some or all of the filing fees. If the arbitration results in an award, the balance of the waived or unpaid filing fees will be paid to the San Diego County Bar Association from that award.
- Submit fees. We accept money orders, cashier’s check and credit cards, payable to San Diego County Bar Association. Please note we do not accept cash and personal/business checks.
- Remit all forms and payments to:
San Diego County Bar Association
Attn: Fee Arbitration Department
330 A Street
San Diego, CA 92101
We accept documents via US Mail, Federal Express, UPS, or courier. However, please do not send documents with signature required. We cannot guarantee that we will accept or be available to sign for documents. Please note that we do not have walk-in service. Documents or files will not be accepted at the SDCBA offices. We will notify you via email when your materials have arrived and are being processed. We must have all required documents, copies, signed forms and payments before we can open an arbitration case.
II. Once all documents and filing fees are received, SDCBA will send a copy of your complaint to the other party and request a “Reply”.
III. Upon receipt of a response, we will assign an arbitrator.
We will select an arbitrator based on availability, subject matter expertise, and lack of conflicts and we will notify you of the arbitrator(s) assigned to your case. (Note: Each party may disqualify one arbitrator without cause. A party is entitled to unlimited challenges of an arbitrator for cause.)
IV. Shortly after the assignment of the arbitrator(s), you will receive a notice with the date, time and location of the hearing.
You must appear at the location detailed in the “Notice of hearing”. If the amount in dispute is less than $1000, it will be decided by declaration (paper review, no hearing) by the Fee Arbitration Committee Chair or his/her designee.
V. The hearing will be closed to the public and will not be transcribed or recorded.
The award decision is NOT made on the day of the hearing. The Awards and Findings will be mailed to you within 30 days of your hearing.
VI. For more information about your rights after fee arbitration and subsequent actions available to the parties, see: Notice of Your Rights After Fee Arbitration , Rejection of Award and Request for Trial / Client Fee Arbitration, and Petition to Confirm, Correct or Vacate an Attorney Client Fee Arbitration Award.
Please note that the completion of arbitration typically takes four to six months from the date SDCBA receives your complete packet with payment.
If you'd like additional information on the fee dispute arbitration program, contact the Bar at (619) 231-0781 or via e-mail at arbitration@sdcba.org.
Frequently Asked Questions
A. Fee arbitration's are non-binding unless the parties agree in writing, after the dispute arises, to binding arbitration before any evidence is taken by the arbitrator(s). If only one of the parties agrees to binding arbitration or if a party fails to respond, the matter will proceed as non-binding arbitration.
Non-binding arbitration is when the arbitrator provides a determination of liability and, if appropriate, an award, (“Findings and Award”). However, either party may file an action in court within 30 days of the award, rejecting the award and requesting a court trial. The party who files the action to reject the award will become the plaintiff in a lawsuit against the other party. This may entail additional costs and, for lawsuits filed in Superior Court, the assistance of an attorney. If neither party files an action in court rejecting the award and requesting a trial within 30 days after the award is mailed, a non-binding award will automatically become binding on the parties.
Binding arbitration is when the arbitrator’s decision regarding liability and award must be honored and cannot be appealed to a court of law. A binding award can only be corrected or vacated by a court in very limited instances.
A. The San Diego County Bar Association's fee dispute arbitration program will consider cases only if the attorney involved in the dispute has an office in San Diego County or if the majority of services were performed in San Diego County.
A. If all parties cooperate, the arbitration case is typically resolved 4 to 6 months from the time SDCBA receives a completed application and payment.
A. It is up to you which path you pursue. Note that you will waive your right to fee arbitration if you choose to file in court. If you do not like the decision from the court, you cannot got back and arbitrate. If you choose, first, to arbitrate and you do not like the non-binding decision, you can always appeal in Small Claims Court (if the amount is dispute is less than $5000) or Superior Court (if the amount in dispute is more than $5000).
A. If your attorney sends you a “Notice of Client's Right to Arbitrate”, you MUST file for arbitration within thirty (30) days if you wish to arbitrate the dispute. If you miss the deadline, the attorney is not required to proceed with an arbitration and the attorney may proceed with a lawsuit or other proceeding to collect the fees. Note that you do NOT need a “Notice of Client’s Right to Arbitrate” to initiate the arbitration process; you can initiate the arbitration process at any time within 1 year of the end of service.
In the event your attorney serves you with an action for fees, and hasn’t provided you with the “Notice of Client’s Right to Arbitrate” you may request Fee Arbitration in response to that law suit. BUT, you must seek Fee Arbitration before filing an answer to the lawsuit."
A. You do not need an attorney to arbitrate a fee dispute against your former attorney. You may choose to hire an attorney to represent you at the arbitration, but the expenses incurred for your representation at the arbitration hearing are not recoverable in the fee arbitration. In any event, you should review the Local Rules of Operation and “Preparing for Fee Arbitration Hearing” to educate yourself about the process.
A. The filing fee covers administrative costs and 4 hours of a volunteer arbitrator’s time for a hearing. If a hearing lasts longer than 4 hours, each arbitrator can charge $150 per hour for his/her services. It is uncommon for a hearing to last longer than 4 hours.
A. If the arbitrator(s) determines that the attorney’s malpractice or professional misconduct reduced the value of his or her services, the arbitrator(s) can reduce the attorney's fees but the arbitrator cannot offset the fees or order the attorney to pay you for any damages the attorney's conduct may have caused.
If you believe that you have a separate claim for attorney malpractice, you should discuss the matter with an independent attorney regarding your legal rights and determine the best route for your action. If you file a lawsuit for malpractice or seek court resolution of the fee dispute, however, you will waive your right to pursue fee arbitration.
If you wish to file a disciplinary complaint with the State Bar of California about your attorney's conduct, you can pursue that simultaneously with pursuing fee arbitration. To learn more about filing a complaint, click here or call the State Bar’s toll-free number at 800-843-9053. Note that disciplinary complaint and a fee dispute are separate matters that achieve different results. Filing a complaint may result in disciplinary action against the attorney; however, the result may not necessarily require the attorney to refund any attorney's fees.
A. If the attorney has already filed a lawsuit against you for unpaid fees, you will receive a notice from the court. You will have 30 days to either respond to the lawsuit or, instead, request fee arbitration. However, if you choose to file a response to the lawsuit, you will lose your right to arbitrate the fee dispute. If you request arbitration, you must file a Notice of Stay of Proceedings with the court and the lawsuit will automatically be stayed.
A. The program will assign your fee dispute to a volunteer attorney arbitrator who must be a member in good standing of the State Bar of California. Depending on the amount of your fee dispute, the panel will consist of one lawyer arbitrator or a three member panel consisting of two lawyer arbitrators and one lay (non-lawyer) arbitrator. Fee arbitrators serving for the State Bar or for a local bar association program must adhere to the same rules that apply to judges to avoid actual bias or the appearance of bias. Either party may disqualify one arbitrator without cause. A party is entitled to unlimited challenges of an arbitrator for cause.
If your amount in dispute is less than $1000, it will be decided by declaration (paper review, no hearing) by the Chair of the Fee Arbitration Committee or his/her designee.
A. Although the program is generally designed for the client to be able to require his or her attorney to participate in fee arbitration, an attorney may require the client to participate if you and the attorney have a signed agreement to submit fee disputes to a Fee Arbitration program. Note that any pre-dispute agreement that requires binding arbitration will not be enforced against you and that agreement will not be used to require your participation in any Fee Arbitration. If your attorney initiates Fee Arbitration with no signed agreement in place requiring your participation, you will have the choice whether to participate. If you do not participate, you waive your right to return to arbitration at a later date and the attorney may choose to file the claim in court.
A. Once a hearing has been scheduled, the hearing will go forth. If any party to arbitration, who has been duly notified, fails to appear at the hearing, the matter may be heard and determined on the basis of the evidence produced. In the discretion of the arbitrator(s), the award may also include findings as to the willfulness of any party's non-attendance at the hearing. You may submit a Waiver of Personal Appearance up to ten (10) days prior to the hearing and designate someone else to appear on your behalf or submit your testimony in writing.
A. $75.00 of the initial filing fee shall be non-refundable. To qualify for any refund, written notice of settlement and/or dismissal must be mailed to the SDCBA Fee Arbitration Committee as follows: If notice that the matter is settled or dismissed is received after filing, but before assignment to an arbitrator or a panel or a mediator, the Association shall retain 25% of the filing fee above the nonrefundable $75.00. If notice that the matter is settled and/or dismissed is received after assignment to an arbitrator (or panel) or mediator, but no hearing has been scheduled, the Association shall retain 50% of the filing fee above the non-refundable $75.00. If a hearing has been scheduled and written notice of the settlement and/or dismissal is received by the Association at least five (5) days prior to the scheduled hearing, the Association shall retain 75% of the filing fee above the non-refundable $75.00. No refunds shall be made if written notice of the settlement and/or dismissal is received less than five (5) days prior to the scheduled hearing
Any refund shall be made to the party who paid the filing fee.
A. A client may file a fee waiver application. A filing fee waiver review can take from one working day to ten working days from the date is received. The Chair or a Vice-Chair of the Fee Arbitration Committee may grant or deny the filing fee waiver or grant a reduced fee. The order of the Chair or Vice-Chair shall be final.
A. Unless the parties have reached a settlement agreement at the hearing, a decision will not be made at the hearing. Within 30 days of the hearing, the arbitrator’s Findings and Award will be mailed to you. The award will include a written “Notice of Your Rights After Fee Arbitration”, which explains your rights and options.
The award may provide for a refund of fees and/or costs from the attorney to you, an amount of outstanding fees you owe to the attorney, or a determination that no money is owed to either party. The arbitrator(s) may also determine that the filing fee costs should be shared, regardless of which party initially paid it.
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