How to File a Kaiser Arbitration Demand in California

Step 1: Prepare a written Demand for Arbitration

California requires a health plan that uses binding arbitration to disclose it clearly in its contract and enrollment form, including whether members are giving up a jury trial (Health and Safety Code 1363.1). Kaiser members in California generally agree at enrollment that malpractice claims against Kaiser and its contracted providers will be decided by binding arbitration (Kaiser’s 2026 enrollment form). The claim starts with a written Demand for Arbitration (OIA Rules 7-8).

The demand names the respondents, describes what happened and states the amount you are seeking. Each of those choices has consequences. Leaving out a doctor or an entity can leave part of the claim behind, and the amount you request decides how many arbitrators hear the case. Before drafting, gather the records and a timeline of the care. If the claim is about a missed or late diagnosis, our Kaiser misdiagnosis page explains the extra deadline questions.

Step 2: Serve the demand on the right parties

Under OIA Rules 7 and 8, the Kaiser entities are served by mail to Kaiser Foundation Health Plan’s Legal Department. Any other respondent, such as an individual doctor, is served the same way a defendant is served in a civil lawsuit. Check the current OIA Rules and your plan documents for the service details before you send anything, because the rules are amended from time to time.

Service matters because the deadline is measured by the date the demand is served, as explained below. Keep proof of the date and method of service for every respondent. If a respondent is served late or the wrong way, that part of the claim may be at risk. This is a step where a lawyer’s help pays off, since serving an individual doctor follows civil lawsuit rules.

Step 3: Pay the $150 fee or ask for a waiver

The claimant pays a single $150 filing fee to the Arbitration Account under OIA Rule 12.a. The fee is waived for claimants whose gross monthly income is below 300 percent of the federal poverty guidelines, under Rule 12.b. Ask about the waiver when you file if your household income may qualify, and keep a copy of the payment or the waiver request with your proof of service.

Arbitration also involves the neutral arbitrator’s fees. Claimants facing extreme hardship can ask the OIA to have Kaiser pay the neutral arbitrator’s fees, under Rule 13. A lawyer can tell you whether that request makes sense in your situation. Lawyer fees in malpractice cases are capped at 25 percent if the case settles before a lawsuit or arbitration demand is filed, and 33 percent after (Business and Professions Code 6146).

Step 4: How many arbitrators, and how long it takes

Under OIA Rule 14, if the demand seeks $200,000 or less, a single neutral arbitrator decides the case and cannot award more than $200,000, unless the parties agree in writing to a three-arbitrator panel. If the demand seeks more than $200,000, each side may appoint a party arbitrator to sit with the neutral, unless both sides waive that and use a single neutral arbitrator.

Kaiser member arbitrations are administered by a neutral Office of the Independent Administrator, which has run the system since 1999 (Office of the Independent Administrator). The system is designed to resolve most cases within 18 months of the demand. In 2025, cases closed in an average of 405 days, and 79 percent closed within 18 months (OIA system description; OIA annual report for 2025). Our Kaiser malpractice overview explains what happens between the demand and the award.

The deadline is measured when the demand is served

Kaiser applies the same statutes of limitations that would apply in court, measured by the date the Demand for Arbitration is served. A California malpractice claim generally must be brought within three years after the injury or one year after you discover it, or reasonably should have, whichever comes first (Code of Civil Procedure 340.5). The date that counts is the date of service.

The one-year period starts when you are aware of the injury and its negligent cause, or have information that would make a reasonable person suspect wrongdoing and investigate (Sanchez v. South Hoover Hospital (1976) 18 Cal.3d 93). The date the demand is served can decide whether the claim survives. Our guide to malpractice deadlines covers the rules in more detail.

How the claim is proved, and why to see a lawyer before you serve

California treats medical negligence as a form of negligence (CACI No. 500). A health care professional is negligent if they fail to use the skill, knowledge and care in diagnosis and treatment that other reasonably careful practitioners would use in the same or similar circumstances (CACI No. 501). Expert testimony is generally required to prove the standard of care, the breach and causation, except for matters within common knowledge, such as a sponge left inside a patient.

A demand served without a doctor’s review can name the wrong people or miss the person who made the key decision. A lawyer looks at who should be named, makes sure the demand is served on time, and sets the amount with Rule 14 in mind. In 2026, MICRA caps non-economic damages at $470,000 per category in an injury case and $650,000 in a death case (Civil Code 3333.2). For a death, see our Kaiser wrongful death page.

What to do now

Start with the records. California patients and their representatives can inspect their medical records within 5 working days of a written request and receive copies within 15 days (Health and Safety Code 123110). Ask for the complete chart. Write down the date of each visit, what you reported, what you were told and the names of the doctors and nurses you saw, while your memory is fresh.

Do not sign anything from Kaiser or an insurer about your claim before you get advice. Do not serve a demand on your own until someone has checked the deadline and the respondents. Beverly Law handles Kaiser arbitrations from our Los Angeles office, in English or Spanish. The consultation is free, and you owe no fees or costs unless we win. Call (310) 552-6959.

• Request your complete Kaiser records in writing.
• Write a timeline with dates and names.
• Have a lawyer check the deadline.
• Name every respondent and serve each one the right way.
• Pay the $150 fee or ask for the waiver if you qualify.

Michael Shemtoub founded Beverly Law in 2008 and has been licensed to practice law in California since 2007. He earned his law degree at UC Hastings, is admitted to practice in the U.S. District Courts for the Central and Northern Districts of California, and has tried cases to verdict. As the firm’s managing attorney, he oversees its cases.

Common questions

Related pages

Kaiser malpractice claims · Kaiser Misdiagnosis and Delayed Diagnosis Claims in California · California Medical Malpractice Statute of Limitations

Important: This page is general information about California law, not legal advice, and reading it does not create an attorney-client relationship. Deadlines and damage limits depend on the facts of each case; talk to a lawyer about yours. MICRA amounts are for judgments, awards and settlements in 2026. Last reviewed: November 5, 2026.