How to complain about a New York lawyer
The grievance committees, what a complaint needs, and fee disputes
- Where
- Grievance committee
- Rule
- 22 NYCRR 1240.7
- Fee disputes
- 22 NYCRR 137
A complaint about a New York lawyer goes, in writing and signed, to the Attorney Grievance Committee of the judicial department that covers the lawyer’s registration address (22 NYCRR 1240.7). A disagreement about a fee usually goes to the fee dispute program instead. New York’s 62 counties fall into four judicial departments; each has its own grievance committee, and the Second Department has three, one for each group of its judicial districts.
Checked against the rules and sources it cites on Sep 29, 2026 by PlainAttorney’s data editor; register figures from the file of Sep 29, 2026. Not legal advice.
Where a complaint goes
The complaint shall be filed initially in the Judicial Department encompassing the respondent's registration address on file with the Office of Court Administration. If that address lies outside New York State, the complaint shall be filed in the Judicial Department in which the respondent was admitted …22 NYCRR 1240.7(a)(2), as published by the Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School
Each lawyer’s record here shows the city and county of the office the register lists, which tells you the likely department; the committee decides where a complaint belongs. Each department’s committee publishes its own form and address. The Second Department has three committees: one for Kings, Queens and Richmond (the 2nd, 11th and 13th Judicial Districts), one for Dutchess, Orange, Putnam, Rockland and Westchester (the 9th) and one for Nassau and Suffolk (the 10th).
| Department | Counties | Where to file |
|---|---|---|
| First | Bronx, New York | Committee page |
| Second | Dutchess, Kings, Nassau, Orange, Putnam, Queens, Richmond, Rockland, Suffolk, Westchester | Complaint form (PDF) |
| Third | Albany, Broome, Chemung, Chenango, Clinton, Columbia, Cortland, Delaware, Essex, Franklin, Fulton, Greene, Hamilton, Madison, Montgomery, Otsego, Rensselaer, Saratoga, Schenectady, Schoharie, Schuyler, St. Lawrence, Sullivan, Tioga, Tompkins, Ulster, Warren, Washington | Committee page |
| Fourth | Allegany, Cattaraugus, Cayuga, Chautauqua, Erie, Genesee, Herkimer, Jefferson, Lewis, Livingston, Monroe, Niagara, Oneida, Onondaga, Ontario, Orleans, Oswego, Seneca, Steuben, Wayne, Wyoming, Yates | File a complaint |
Source: 22 NYCRR 1240.7, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School; the committees’ pages on nycourts.gov.
What the complaint needs
Investigations of professional misconduct may be authorized upon receipt by a Committee of a written original complaint, signed by the complainant, which need not be verified.22 NYCRR 1240.7(a)(1)
Q. Will the register show it?
A. The register has no field for complaints. A record changes only when its status does, as when the Appellate Division suspends or disbars a lawyer; the new value then appears in the next register file.
Q. Is a disagreement about a bill a grievance?
A. Usually not: the fee dispute program handles fees between $1,000 and $50,000 in civil matters (22 NYCRR 137.1).
Source: 22 NYCRR 1240.7 and 137.1, Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School.
After you file
The committee’s chief attorney screens the complaint and may decline it, for example when the conduct described would not be misconduct, or refer a fee dispute elsewhere (1240.7(d)(1)). After an investigation the committee may (1240.7(d)(2)):
- dismiss the complaint by letter to the complainant and to the respondent
- refer the complaint to a suitable alternative forum
- make an application for diversion pursuant to section 1240.11
- issue a Letter of Advisement to the respondent
- issue a written Admonition to the respondent
- authorize a formal disciplinary proceeding before the Appellate Division (section 1240.8)
The file stays confidential: “all papers, records and documents … upon any complaint, inquiry, investigation or proceeding relating to the conduct or discipline of an attorney or attorneys, shall be sealed and be deemed private and confidential” (Judiciary Law § 90(10)). The exception is a case where the Appellate Division sustains charges: then “the records and documents in relation thereto shall be deemed public records”.
Source: 22 NYCRR 1240.7(d), Legal Information Institute, Cornell Law School; Judiciary Law § 90(10), New York State Senate, consolidated laws.
If a lawyer took your money
The Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection, a New York State fund, can reimburse clients whose lawyer stole their money: “The Trustees may reimburse losses caused by the dishonest conduct of lawyers admitted to the practice of law in New York State, up to a maximum of $450,000 for each client loss.” There is no application fee, and clients are not required to be represented by counsel.
Source: The Lawyers’ Fund for Client Protection, nylawfund.org, read Sep 29, 2026.
What the register records
On the file of Sep 29, 2026: 2,189 disbarred and 719 resigned for a disciplinary reason, among everyone on the register. Suspensions are counted apart, by value, on the discipline page: most read “Suspended, delinquent”, a suspension recorded on a registration that is also delinquent, and the register does not say which were for misconduct.
Source: NY Office of Court Administration, attorney registration file (data.ny.gov, dataset eqw2-r5nb), downloaded Sep 29, 2026.