October 29, 2007
By D. ASHLEY VERRILL, STAFF REPORTER
California has the fifth most efficient system for resolving fee disputes between clients and lawyers, according to the Washington, D.C.-based legal watchdog group HALT.
The lawyer-client fee arbitration report card evaluated the state in six key areas. Those included option to mediate, enforcement methods, publicity of system, ease of filing, whether decisions are binding and use of non-lawyers in the process.
States ranked above California included Maine, New Jersey, New York and Washington, D.C. Several failed the test, including New Hampshire, Vermont and West Virginia.
Eight states do not have statewide fee arbitration systems.
HALT faulted the California system for not requiring lay people on arbitration panels.
Other states require a lay person on some panels. But the leader of the program for the State Bar of California said having an attorney oversee the process actually works to both parties' advantage. Depending on the extent of the dispute, a lawyer is always on the panel of one to three members.
"Lawyers are harder on other lawyers because they know what the professional requirements are," said Jill Sperber, director of the state bar's Mandatory Fee Arbitration Committee.
The state bar has 45 local programs located in each county or area of the state that have individual programs for fee arbitration. All areas are subject to oversight by the statewide program.
Generally, disputes of smaller quantities are seen before a one-person panel that will be a volunteer attorney from the local bar. Higher magnitude cases can be seen in front of a three-person panel that could include one lay person.
Washington, D.C. is one of few that require a lay person to be on the panel and do so in all cases greater than $5,000. In Texas, this applies to cases higher than $500, but its system is voluntary for lawyers and is not free of charge.
Minnesota requires two lay people and is one of the only states where they represent a majority. Washington also requires two lay people in cases exceeding $10,000. North Carolina and Rhode Island prohibit non-lawyers from participating at all.
Ms. Sperber also questioned the group's ranking of California's enforcement system, which was also given a lower rating in the report.
"We are one of only two states in the country that help clients enforce awards free of charge," he said.
California is one of nine states that sponsor a fee arbitration program that is mandatory for lawyers. The defendant attorney can opt out of the decision from arbitration but then is still subject to a court trial if the client chooses.
© The North Bay Business Journal, 2007
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