State Bar of Michigan - Client Protection Fund header

Client Protection Fund Claim Application

The application is available in a blank PDF form or a fillable PDF form. To access the application, please follow one of the links below.

Remember to include copies, not originals, of the following items when you submit your application:

  1. The agreement between you and the lawyer regarding fees and services, such as Retainer Agreements, Contract for Legal Services, Fee Agreements, Letter of Engagement, or other similar documents.
  2. Copies of cashed checks, money orders, receipts, or other documents showing payment.
  3. Documents drafted by the attorney on your behalf.
  4. Police reports from complaints you may have made against the attorney.
  5. If you have received a notice that the attorney has filed bankruptcy, please include the notice.
  6. If the claim is based upon embezzlement of settlement proceeds and a settlement check was issued, provide a copy of the cashed check. This may be obtained from the insurance company or opposing counsel.
  7. Please do not send medical records.
  8. If possible, please send standard letter size copies of documents and not legal size.

Answer every question on the application. If there is not enough space, use the blank pages at the end of the application and label your answer using the question number and letter. There are time limits for submitting the application, so if you are missing a document submit your application and note when you expect to provide the document.

Claimants do not need an attorney to submit a claim application. Some claimants do seek assistance from an attorney. State Bar of Michigan attorneys are urged to give assistance, without fee, to any claimant presenting a claim to the Client Protection Fund.

The State Bar of Michigan does not acknowledge any legal responsibility for the acts of individual lawyers in their practice of law. All reimbursements of losses by the Client Protection Fund are a matter of grace in the sole discretion of the Board of Commissioners, and are not a matter of right. No person shall have any right in the Client Protection Fund as a third party beneficiary or otherwise.

The Client Protection Fund is not a substitute for malpractice insurance or a fee adjustment service.