Total Credits: 3 CLE, 3 Ethics
Learn all you need to know about fees from our expert panel. Discover what you should and should not include in your fee agreements, how to collect fees ethically, and what to do in case of a fee dispute. The discussion will include:
Faculty
Renee Gerstman, Gerstman Law
Kelly Goldstein, Bar Counsel, State Bar of Arizona
Pat Sallen, Ethics at Law PLLC
Meredith Vivona, Practice Management Attorney, State Bar of Arizona
Chairperson
Sarah Epperson, Ethics Counsel, State Bar of Arizona*
*Also serving as faculty.
| All Things Fees Manual (1.3 MB) | 40 Pages | Available after Purchase |
| Slides (3.6 MB) | 39 Pages | Available after Purchase |
Renee Gerstman is an attorney, mediator, arbitrator and neutral evaluator with over three decades of experience in business transactions, real estate, construction, corporate, contract, commercial and business litigation. Renee has arbitrated and mediated all types of disputes ranging from small consumer matters to large construction defect claims. Renee is on the American Arbitration Association's Roster of Commercial Neutrals, AAA Construction panel and Merger and Acquisition panel. She is also on the Arizona Association of Realtors roster of mediators, a FINRA mediator, arbitrator and chairperson and an arbitrator and mediator with New Era ADR a virtual mediation and arbitration platform. She has been listed as a Southwest Super Lawyer in alternative dispute resolution since 2017. Renee is a member of the National Academy of Distinguished Neutrals, AV rated by Martindale Hubbel and a senior fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America. She has been a member of the State Bar's Fee Arbitration Program since 1991 and chaired the Program from 2012-2014. She currently serves on the State Bar's Ethics Advisory Group and on the Executive Council of the State Bar of Arizona's Alternative Dispute Resolution Section.
Patricia Sallen is a lawyer in private practice focusing on professional responsibility issues. She represents lawyers in discipline and admission matters, provides ethics advice to lawyers, serves as an expert witness on professional-responsibility issues, and consults on a myriad of other law-related topics. She regularly presents at CLE seminars and publishes articles about professional responsibility and writes the Eye on Ethics column for Arizona Attorney. She also has taught professional responsibility as an adjunct professor at the Arizona State University Sandra Day O'Connor College of Law for more than a decade. In addition to practicing in private law firms, she spent more than 15 years working for the State Bar of Arizona as both a bar counsel and ethics counsel and supervised programs such as the Fee Arbitration Program and Client Protection Fund. She served as expert consultant to the Arizona Supreme Court's 2014-15 comprehensive ethical rules review effort and to the Court's 2019-20 Task Force on the Delivery of Legal Services, which resulted in the groundbreaking rule changes allowing non-lawyer firm ownership and legal paraprofessionals. She currently serves on the State Bar's Ethics Advisory Group and the Supreme Court's Task Force on Ethics Rules Governing the State Attorney General, County Attorneys, and Other Public Lawyers.
Meredith L. Vivona is the Ethics Counsel for the State Bar of Arizona, where she advises lawyers through the Ethics Hotline, presents ethics related CLE programs, acts as legal advisor to the Fee Arbitration Program, serves on the Ethics Advisory Group and acts as liaison to the Arizona Supreme Court’s Attorney Ethics Advisory Committee. Prior to becoming Ethics Counsel, Meredith served as Practice Management Attorney for Practice 2.0 and the Trust Account Helpline, the State Bar’s confidential practice management and trust account advice program. Before joining the State Bar of Arizona, Meredith served as Independent Bar Counsel, investigating and prosecuting misconduct allegations brought against attorneys, when the Lawyer Regulation Office had a conflict. Part of Meredith’s responsibilities included serving as Acting Disciplinary Counsel for the Commission on Judicial Conduct where she investigated and resolved judicial misconduct complaints. Before serving as IBC, Meredith enjoyed a varied career in private practice, with experience in civil litigation matters throughout the state. Meredith is admitted to practice in Arizona and the U.S. District Court for the State of Arizona. Meredith received her Juris Doctor from Wake Forest Law School in Winston-Salem, North Carolina.
Kelly A. Goldstein serves as bar counsel to the State Bar of Arizona. Before joining the Bar, Kelly was a commercial litigator, appellate attorney, and former partner at the law firm of Snell & Wilmer, LLP. Kelly has taught professional responsibility at the Sandra Day O’Connor College of Law, co-chaired the State Bar Convention in 2019, and held numerous positions with the American Bar Association, including Co-Chair of the Commercial & Business Litigation Committee, and Co-Chair of its Ethics Subcommittee. Kelly is an American Bar Foundation Fellow and has been recognized by Southwest Super Lawyers and The Best Lawyers in America.
Sarah Epperson is Ethics Counsel for the State Bar of Arizona, where she advises lawyers through the Ethics Hotline, presents ethics-related CLE programs, acts as legal advisor to the Fee Arbitration Program, serves on the Ethics Advisory Group, and acts as liaison to the Arizona Supreme Court's Attorney Ethics Advisory Committee. Sarah is an Arizona native who earned her B.A. in Political Science from the University of Arizona, summa cum laude, and her J.D. from the University of Arizona, James E. Rogers College of Law. After earning her law degree, Sarah served as a Judicial Law Clerk for the Honorable Virginia C. Kelly of the Arizona Court Of Appeals, Division II. Prior to assuming the role of Ethics Counsel, Sarah enjoyed a varied career in private practice, with experience in civil and commercial litigation, estate controversies, insurance defense, and civil appeals. She was honored as a Southwest Super Lawyers Rising Star from 2020 to 2022 and was listed with the Best Lawyers in America: Ones to Watch in both 2021 and 2022. Sarah is admitted to practice in Arizona and the U.S. District Court for the State of Arizona and is a member of the Association of Professional Responsibility Lawyers, the American Bar Association Center for Professional Responsibility, and the Arizona Women Lawyers Association. When not in the office, Sarah can be found reading in the Arizona sunshine, planning her next international adventure, or cheering on the Arizona Diamondbacks.
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