Mandatory Fee Arbitration Under New York's Matrimonial Rules

Cardozo Online Journal of Conflict Resolution, Vol. 3, No. 1, 2001

67 Pages Posted: 11 Sep 2007

See all articles by Lester Brickman

Lester Brickman

Yeshiva University - Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law

Abstract

Attorney-client fee arbitration is a subject of burgeoning interest to the bar and to scholars as well. Several years ago, I agreed to write an article on the substantive issues raised by fee arbitration as part of an analysis of New York's then newly adopted mandatory fee arbitration rule. Contacting other mandatory arbitration programs to request copies of the manuals they provided to fee arbitrators, I learned that no such manuals existed. Writing on a tabula rosa, I wrote an analysis of the substantive tasks in fee arbitration that could be adopted for use as part of a training manual for arbitrators tasked with determining whether a fee was excessive. This analysis extended well beyond the usual practice of courts simply repeating the general propositions set forth in ABA Model Rule 1.5. I described the product as a work-in-progress that would hopefully jump start a colloquy with respect to the substantive "reasonable fee" issues that I addressed. Alas, this did not occur.

The article was published in 3 Cardozo Online J. of Conflict Resolution 1 (2001) and did not receive wide circulation. I am "republishing" the article on SSRN to make it more widely available in the continued hope that others will address the much neglected task of identifying and clarifying the specific factors to be examined by an arbitrator in determining whether a legal fee is excessive.

JEL Classification: K100, K40, K49

Suggested Citation

Brickman, Lester, Mandatory Fee Arbitration Under New York's Matrimonial Rules. Cardozo Online Journal of Conflict Resolution, Vol. 3, No. 1, 2001 , Available at SSRN: https://ssrn.com/abstract=1012084

Lester Brickman (Contact Author)

Yeshiva University - Benjamin N. Cardozo School of Law ( email )

55 Fifth Ave.
New York, NY 10003
United States
212-790-0327 (Phone)
212-790-0205 (Fax)

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