Mandatory Fee Arbitration – Volunteers

Serve as a volunteer fee arbitrator

Every fee arbitration is decided by volunteers. We are recruiting experienced California attorneys to serve as neutral arbitrators on attorney-client fee disputes, and non-attorneys to serve alongside them as lay arbitrators on three-member panels.
Commitment
One to two cases a year
Per case
One to two hours of prep
Hearing
Two to four hours per case
Format
Usually Zoom, you decide
The case for it

Why attorneys volunteer

Attorney fee disputes are among the most common points of friction between lawyers and the people they serve. Resolving them quickly, fairly, and confidentially keeps them out of court, protects the reputation of the profession, and gives clients a real remedy that does not require hiring another lawyer.
What you get out of it
  • You act as the decision-maker rather than an advocate, which sharpens how you evaluate a case
  • Insight into the billing issues clients actually raise, which tends to improve your own practices
  • Free access to BHBA’s 25 and 40 hour mediation training
Who is eligible
  • Active licensee of the State Bar of California in good standing for at least five years, or a retired judge who is an active licensee
  • Willing to complete BHBA’s arbitrator training, which runs about two hours and includes MCLE credit
The role

What you do

Review the written submissions and supporting materials from both parties. Sit for the hearing, usually two to four hours. Hear testimony, weigh evidence, and serve as a neutral fact-finder. Then issue written findings and an award using a template and checklist BHBA provides.
Disputes of $25,000 or less go to a single arbitrator. Larger disputes go to a panel of three, where an experienced attorney serves as panel chair alongside a second attorney arbitrator and a non-attorney lay arbitrator.

The commitment

Roughly one to two cases a year, with the option to take more. One to two hours of preparation per case, plus a two to four hour hearing. Usually Zoom, but the format is the panel chair’s call.
Support

Who does what

BHBA
Sends you the party names for a conflicts check before assignment, collects the submissions from both parties and gets them to you, provides pre-filled forms, can help with Zoom links, and sends the award to the parties.
You
Check for conflicts, schedule the hearing, conduct it, and write the award.
Training
BHBA trains every new arbitrator before a first assignment. It runs about two hours and includes MCLE credit.
Complimentary mediation training
Volunteer arbitrators get free access to BHBA’s 25 and 40 hour mediation training, one of the more substantial neutral-skills programs available in Southern California. It is offered as a benefit of volunteering, not a requirement, and you do not need it to take a case. Learn about the training.
Apply

Join a panel

Your experience and judgment make a real difference for clients, for attorneys, and for the profession.
Non-attorneys

Lay arbitrators

Not an attorney? There is a role for you too.
Every three-member panel includes a non-attorney lay arbitrator, who is a full voting member with the same weight as the attorneys on the panel. Lay arbitrators receive the same training and carry the same caseload.
To be eligible you must have never been admitted to practice law in any jurisdiction, never attended law school, and never worked regularly for a court or a law practice in any capacity, including as a paralegal or law clerk. No legal background is required, and in fact none is permitted.
The role is open to college students and to anyone else who meets those criteria.
Contact

Questions about the program

BHBA staff can answer questions about eligibility, training, and what serving actually involves.