What ACAP Can Do

• Depending on the situation, ACAP may contact your lawyer to make them aware of your concerns. Examples of situations that ACAP may be able to assist with include a lack of communication and a failure to return client papers and property.
• The Grievance Mediation and Fee Arbitration programs may be able to help you resolve a fee dispute or other issue with your lawyer.
• ACAP lawyers can provide general information about the Rules Regulating The Florida Bar.

What ACAP Cannot Do

• ACAP cannot provide legal advice or make decisions for you. If you need guidance on a legal matter, you may wish to contact the Bar’s Lawyer Referral Service at 800-342-8011.  You may also visit “Florida Free Legal Answers” to ask a volunteer lawyer a specific question about your civil legal issue.
• ACAP is not an alternative to court proceedings. If you are involved in a legal dispute, the judicial process may be your primary, if not exclusive, source for relief. ACAP cannot intervene on your behalf.
• ACAP cannot take complaints over the phone. If you wish to file a complaint, you must complete the Inquiry/Complaint form and submit it according to the instructions. Please note that filing a Bar complaint is not a proper or likely way to obtain a refund or monetary damages.
• ACAP cannot prejudge a potential Bar complaint over the phone.
• ACAP cannot contact someone else’s attorney. If you are having an issue with your own attorney, under limited circumstances, ACAP may be able to contact the attorney.

Inquiries and complaints about a lawyer’s conduct, even if dismissed, are reflected in Bar records for 12 months after the files are closed. Inquiries and complaints about a lawyer’s conduct are serious matters and should be undertaken only after other available ways to resolve the problem have been unsuccessful.