State Bar of California Approved Program

Mandatory Fee Arbitration

A confidential process for resolving attorney fee disputes over legal fees and costs between clients and their attorneys.
Counties served
Los Angeles & Ventura
Filing fee
5%, capped at $5,000
Timeline
About six months
Jurisdiction

Where you can file

Counties served by the BHBA Mandatory Fee Arbitration Program Map of California with Los Angeles County and Ventura County shaded to show the filing jurisdiction. Los Angeles Ventura
Counties we serve
BHBA can hear an attorney fee dispute where at least one of the attorneys involved has an office in Los Angeles County or Ventura County, maintained an office in either county at the time the services were rendered, or where the majority of the legal services were provided.

If your dispute falls outside these counties

Most attorney fee disputes are handled by the bar association program in the county where the legal services were provided. Not every county has one. The State Bar of California maintains the list of approved local programs and administers arbitration directly where no local program exists.
Start here

Choose the section that applies to you

Each section covers the same program from a different side of the process.
For clients
You have a dispute with your lawyer
What the program does, what it costs, deadlines you cannot miss, and how to file.
Go to the client guide →
For attorneys
You are pursuing or responding to a fee claim
Statutory notice requirements, filing mechanics, panel composition, and award enforcement.
Go to the attorney guide →
For volunteers
You want to serve on a panel
Attorney arbitrator and lay arbitrator roles, eligibility, training, and time commitment.
Go to volunteer information →
At a glance

How the program works

What it decides
Whether the fees and costs an attorney charged were reasonable, and whether the client is owed a refund or still owes money.
What it does not decide
Claims of legal malpractice or professional misconduct, and any claim for damages beyond the fees in dispute.
Who can file
Either the client or the attorney, so long as the dispute falls within Los Angeles or Ventura County.
Filing fee
5% of the amount in dispute, capped at $5,000, paid by the filing party at the time the form is completed.
What the fee covers
Up to four hours of mediation and up to four hours of arbitration.
Who ultimately pays
The filing fee becomes part of the dispute. It can be built into a settlement, and if the matter goes to a hearing the arbitrators decide who ultimately pays it.
Is it binding
No, unless both parties agree in writing after the dispute arises. Otherwise either party may seek a new trial in court within 30 days of service of the award.
Timeline
The whole process takes about six months.
Confidentiality
The file, the hearing, and the award are confidential unless a party goes to court to challenge or enforce the award.
Governing rules
Business and Professions Code sections 6200 through 6206 and the State Bar of California approved BHBA Rules of Procedure for Fee Arbitrations.
File

Start a fee dispute

Forms, statutes, and guidance are located under Resources.
Contact

Questions about the program

BHBA staff can answer questions about the rules, the forms, and where a matter stands in the arbitration process. BHBA cannot give legal advice about your dispute, advise you on what amounts or information to enter on the form, or predict how an arbitrator will rule.