Source: http://www.saratogalaw.com/part137.shtml
Timestamp: 2013-05-21 08:23:18
Document Index: 793168510

Matched Legal Cases: ['§137', '§137', '§137', 'art 137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137', '§137']

§137.0 Scope of Program
§137.1 Application
(a) This Part shall apply where representation has commenced on or after January
1, 2002, to all attorneys admitted to the bar of the State of New York who
undertake to represent a client in any civil matter.
(2) amounts in dispute involving a sum of less than $1,000 or more than $50,000,
except that an arbitral body may hear disputes involving other amounts if the
parties have consented;
(3) claims involving substantial legal questions, including professional malpractice
or misconduct;
(4) claims against an attorney for damages or affirmative relief other than
adjustment of the fee;
(5) disputes where the
fee to be paid by the client has been determined pursuant to statute or rule
and allowed as of right by a court; or where the fee has
been determined pursuant to a court order;
(6) disputes where no attorney's services have been rendered for more than
(7) disputes where the attorney is admitted to practice in another jurisdiction
and maintains no office in the State of New York, or where no material portion
of the services was rendered in New York;
(8) disputes where the request for arbitration is made by a person who is not
the client of the attorney or the legal representative of the client. §137.2	General
(a) In the event of a fee dispute between attorney and client, whether or
not the attorney already has received some or all of the fee in dispute, the
client may seek to resolve the dispute by arbitration under this Part. Arbitration
under this Part shall be mandatory for an attorney if requested by a client,
and the arbitration award shall be final and binding unless de novo review
is sought as provided in section 137.8.
(b) The client may consent in advance to submit fee disputes to arbitration
under this Part. Such consent shall be stated in a retainer agreement or other
writing that specifies that the client has read the official written instructions
and procedures for Part 137, and that the client agrees to resolve fee disputes
(c) The attorney and client may consent in advance to arbitration pursuant
to this Part that is final and binding upon the parties and not subject to
de novo review. Such consent shall be in writing in a form prescribed by the
(d) The attorney and client may consent in advance to submit fee disputes
for final and binding arbitration to an arbitral forum other than an arbitral
body created by this Part. Such consent shall be in writing in a form prescribed
by the Board of Governors. Arbitration in that arbitral forum shall be governed
by the rules and procedures of that forum and shall not be subject to this
§137.3	Board
(a) There shall be a Board of Governors of the New York State Fee Dispute
(b) The Board of Governors shall consist of 18 members, to be designated from
the following: 12 members of the bar of the State of New York and six members
of the public who are not lawyers. Members of the bar may include judges and
justices of the New York State Unified Court System.
(1) The members from the bar shall be appointed as follows: four by the Chief
Judge from the membership of statewide bar associations and two each by the
Presiding Justices of the Appellate Divisions.
(2) The public members
shall be appointed as follows: two by the Chief Judge and one each
by the Presiding Justices of the Appellate Divisions. Appointing official shall give consideration to appointees who have some background
(d) Board members shall serve for terms of three years and shall be eligible
for reappointment for one additional term. The initial terms of service shall
be designated by the Chief Judge such that six members serve one-year terms,
six members serve two-year terms, and six members serve three-year terms. A
person appointed to fill a vacancy occurring other than by expiration of a
term of office shall be appointed for the unexpired term of the member he or
(e) Eleven members of the Board of Governors shall constitute a quorum. Decisions
shall be made by a majority of the quorum.
(f) Members of the Board of Governors shall serve without compensation but
shall be reimbursed for their reasonable, actual and direct expenses incurred
in furtherance of their official duties.
(g) The Board of Governors, with the approval of the four Presiding Justices
of the Appellate Divisions, shall adopt such guidelines and standards as may
be necessary and appropriate for the operation of programs under this Part,
including, but not limited to: accrediting arbitral bodies to provide fee dispute
resolution services under this Part; prescribing standards regarding the training
and qualifications of arbitrators; monitoring the operation and performance
of arbitration programs to insure their conformance with the guidelines and
standards established by this Part and by the Board of Governors; and submission
by arbitral bodies of annual reports in writing to the Board of Governors.
(h) The Board of Governors shall submit to the Administrative Board of the
Courts an annual report in such form as the Administrative Board shall require.
§137.4	Arbitral
(a) A fee dispute resolution
program recommended by the Board of Governors, and approved by the Presiding
of the Appellate Division in the judicial
department where the program is established, shall be established and administered
in each county or in a combination of counties. Each program shall be established
and administered by a local bar association (the “arbitral body”)
to the extent practicable. The New York State Bar Association, the Unified
Court System through the District Administrative Judges, or such other entity
as the Board of Governors may recommend also may be designated as an arbitral
body in a fee dispute resolution program approved pursuant to this Part.
(1) establish written instructions and procedures for administering the program,
subject to the approval of the Board of Governors and consistent with this
Part. The procedures shall include a process for selecting and assigning
arbitrators to hear and determine the fee disputes covered by this Part.
Arbitral bodies are strongly encouraged to include nonlawyer members of the
public in any pool of arbitrators that will be used for the designation of
multi-member arbitrator panels. (2) require that arbitrators file a written oath or affirmation to faithfully
and fairly arbitrate all disputes that come before them.
(3) be responsible for the daily administration of the arbitration program
and maintain all necessary files, records, information and documentation required
for purposes of the operation of the program, in accordance with directives
and procedures established by the Board of Governors.
(4) prepare an annual report for the Board of Governors containing a statistical
synopsis of fee dispute resolution activity and such other data as the Board
(5) designate one or more persons to administer the program and serve as a
liaison to the public, the bar, the Board of Governors and the grievance committees
§137.5	Venue
A fee dispute shall be heard by the arbitral body handling disputes in the
county in which the majority of the legal services were performed. For good
cause shown, a dispute may be transferred from one arbitral body to another.
The Board of Governors shall resolve any disputes between arbitral bodies over
§137.6	Arbitration
(a) (1) Except as set forth in paragraph (2), where the attorney and client cannot agree as to the attorney's fee, the attorney shall forward a written notice to the client, entitled “Notice of Client's Right to Arbitrate,” by certified mail or by personal service. The notice (i) shall be in a form approved by the Board of Governors; (ii) shall contain a statement of the client's right to arbitrate; (iii) shall advise that the client has 30 days from receipt of the notice in which to elect to resolve the dispute under this Part; (iv) shall be accompanied by the written instructions and procedures for the arbitral body having jurisdiction over the fee dispute, which explain how to commence a fee arbitration proceeding; and (v) shall be accompanied by a copy of the “request for arbitration” form necessary to commence the arbitration proceeding.
(2) Where the client has consented in advance to submit fee disputes to arbitration as set forth in subdivisions (b) and (c) of section 137.2 of this Part, and where the attorney and client cannot agree as to the attorney's fee, the attorney shall forward to the client, by certified mail or by personal service, a copy of the “request for arbitration” form necessary to commence the arbitration proceeding along with such notice and instructions as shall be required by the rules and guidelines of the Board of Governors, and the provisions of subdivision (b) of this section shall not apply. (b) If the attorney forwards to the client by certified mail or personal service
a notice of the client's right to arbitrate, and the client does not file a
request for arbitration within 30 days after the notice was received or served,
the attorney may commence an action in a court of competent jurisdiction to
recover the fee and the client no longer shall have the right to request arbitration
pursuant to this Part with respect to the fee dispute at issue. An attorney
who institutes an action to recover a fee must allege in the complaint (i)
that the client received notice under this Part of the client's right to pursue
arbitration and did not file a timely request for arbitration or (ii) that
the dispute is not otherwise covered by this Part.
(c) In the event the client determines to pursue arbitration on the client's
own initiative, the client may directly contact the arbitral body having jurisdiction
over the fee dispute. Alternatively, the client may contact the attorney, who
shall be under an obligation to refer the client to the arbitral body having
jurisdiction over the dispute. The arbitral body then shall forward to the
client the appropriate papers set forth in subdivision (a) necessary for commencement
(d) If the client elects
to submit the dispute to arbitration, the client shall file the “request for arbitration form” with the appropriate
arbitral body, and the arbitral body shall mail a copy of the “request
for arbitration” to the named attorney together with an “attorney
fee response” to be completed by the attorney and returned to the arbitral
body within 15 days of mailing. The attorney shall include with the “attorney
fee response” a certification that a copy of the response was served
upon the client.
(e) Upon receipt of the attorney's response, the arbitral body shall designate
the arbitrator or arbitrators who will hear the dispute and shall expeditiously
schedule a hearing. The parties must receive at least 15 days notice in writing
of the time and place of the hearing and of the identity of the arbitrator
(f) Either party may request the removal of an arbitrator based upon the arbitrator's
personal or professional relationship to a party or counsel. A request for
removal must be made to the arbitral body no later than five days prior to
the scheduled date of the hearing. The arbitral body shall have the final decision
concerning the removal of an arbitrator.
(g) The client may not
withdraw from the process after the arbitral body has received the “attorney fee response.” If
the client seeks to withdraw at any time thereafter, the arbitration will
proceed as scheduled whether or
not the client appears, and a decision will be made on the basis of the evidence
(h) If the attorney without good cause fails to respond to a request for arbitration
or otherwise does not participate in the arbitration, the arbitration will
proceed as scheduled and a decision will be made on the basis of the evidence
(i) Any party may participate in the arbitration hearing without a personal
appearance by submitting to the arbitrator testimony and exhibits by written
declaration under penalty of perjury.
§137.7	Arbitration
(3) compel, by subpoena, the attendance of witnesses and the production of
books, papers and documents pertaining to the proceeding.
(d) The burden shall be on the attorney to prove the reasonableness of the
fee by a preponderance of the evidence and to present documentation of the
work performed and the billing history. The client may then present his or
her account of the services rendered and time expended. Witnesses may be called
by the parties. The client shall have the right of final reply.
(e) Any party may provide for a stenographic or other record at the party's
expense. Any other party to the arbitration shall be entitled to a copy of
said record upon written request and payment of the expense thereof.
(f) The arbitration award shall be issued no later than 30 days after the
date of the hearing. Arbitration awards shall be in writing and shall specify
the basis for the determination. Except as set forth in section 137.8, all
arbitration awards shall be final and binding.
(g) Should the arbitrator or arbitral body become aware of evidence of professional
misconduct as a result of the fee dispute resolution process, that arbitrator
or body shall refer such evidence to the appropriate grievance committee of
the Appellate Division for appropriate action.
(h) In any arbitration conducted under this Part, an arbitrator shall have
the same immunity that attaches in judicial proceedings.
§137.8	De
(a) A party aggrieved by the arbitration award may commence an action on the
merits of the fee dispute in a court of competent jurisdiction within 30 days
after the arbitration award has been mailed. If no action is commenced within
30 days of the mailing of the arbitration award, the award shall become final
(b) Any party who fails to participate in the hearing shall not be entitled
to seek de novo review absent good cause for such failure to participate.
(c) Arbitrators shall not be called as witnesses nor shall the arbitration
award be admitted in evidence at the trial de novo.
§137.9	Filing
Upon application to the Board of Governors, and approval by the Presiding
Justice of the Appellate Division in the judicial department where the arbitral
program is established, a arbitral body may require payment by the parties
of a filing fee. The filing fee shall be reasonably related to the cost of
providing the service and shall not be in such an amount as to discourage use
§137.10	Confidentiality
All proceedings and hearings commenced and conducted in accordance with this
Part, including all papers in the arbitration case file, shall be confidential,
except to the extent necessary to take ancillary legal action with respect
to a fee matter.
§137.11	Failure
to Participate in Arbitration
All attorneys are required to participate in the arbitration program established
by this Part upon the filing of a request for arbitration by a client in conformance
with these rules. An attorney who without good cause fails to participate in
the arbitration process shall be referred to the appropriate grievance committee
of the Appellate Division for appropriate action.
§137.12	Mediation
(a) Arbitral bodies are strongly encouraged to offer mediation services as
part of a mediation program approved by the Board of Governors. The mediation
program shall permit arbitration pursuant to this Part in the event the mediation
does not resolve the fee dispute.
(b) All mediation proceedings and all settlement discussions and offers of
settlement are confidential and may not be disclosed in any subsequent arbitration.