Court-Appointed Attorneys: How Much Do They Cost?

What are Court-Appointed Attorneys?

In Pennsylvania, if you cannot afford to hire an attorney to represent you in a criminal case or a family law case, the Court may appoint an attorney to represent you. The appointed attorney’s job is to act as your lawyer in every way possible that the law allows. They will speak to you regarding the case, prepare for hearings and hearings, and negotiate on your behalf. A court-appointed attorney must follow the law and the ethical rules that bind a lawyer even though they are appointed by the Court rather than hired by a client.
Although the appointed attorney has all of the duties and responsibilities of an attorney hired by a client, they are not paid in the same way. When you hire an attorney you pay them directly. This means that you have a contract with them in which you agree to pay them for legal services. No matter what that contract says, you and your lawyer decide together how much he or she gets paid. In addition, you owe your private attorney their fee whether they are successful in your case or not; you don’t get your money back if you are convicted or if your case ends badly.
When the Court appoints an attorney, they still have the same duties and responsibilities as a hired attorney in most respects. However, the way they are paid is different. When the Court appoints an attorney to represent a person who cannot afford an attorney, who we will call a criminal "defendant" for this post, that defendant does not pay any fee to the lawyer. The lawyer, instead, bills their time to the county. The county pays the appointed lawyer a balance that is set by court rule.
For a criminal defendant, the amount paid is $60 per hour for all work in the case, subject to some very limited exceptions. For a family law matter like a custody case or a divorce, a parent/party who cannot afford a lawyer pays a fee of $10 per year until their child turns 18 or their case is finished, whichever comes first. The appointed lawyer must bill approximately $3,000+ worth of work to the county in order to be paid anything at all .
Remember, this is not a "scholarship" and failure to pay the court-appointed attorney $10 per year is a violation of local court rule that can result in punishment or other repercussions. However, know that no court-appointed attorney is going to stop working on your case if you fail to pay the fee that is due. Their bills to the county are "followed" by the Court, but not by your appointed attorney.
Generally, appointed attorneys are paid reasonably well for the important work that they do. Using the current rate, if a court-appointed attorney gets only $3,000 in fees, it is because they worked for about 50 hours (each case is different). That is a reasonable hourly rate, and in many cases the time worked is more than the court gets billed. Most of the appointed attorneys with whom I have spoken like having the opportunity to help people who cannot afford a private lawyer. However, a court-appointed attorney’s caseload is like an assigned public defender’s caseload. There are good public defenders with huge caseloads, and there are public defenders who just mark time due to their many cases. We all have those attorneys who say that it "isn’t their job" to negotiate and that they only "go to court." That attitude is not fair to the clients that they represent. Also, there are appointed attorneys who have too many cases and who do not have the time that they really should be giving to each case.
It is important to carefully consider your options before deciding whether or not to accept appointed representation. Additionally, if you have a case in which you would like to be represented by a private attorney but you cannot afford it, you may be eligible for court-appointed representation. If you are determined in your efforts to find a reliable and competent family law or criminal law attorney in Pennsylvania, you should reach out to that attorney and see whether they will waive their fee. Some private attorneys waive their fee in criminal cases that include the possibility of incarceration, and/or in family law cases that involve children. It doesn’t hurt to ask.

Who is Eligible for a Court-Appointed Attorney?

A parent’s income level is the primary consideration in determining eligibility and extent of services provided by an attorney appointed to represent a parent in a case. In cases of alleged child neglect, abuse, or a child whose safety is at risk in the home, and where the parent has been considered for removal of the child, the parent will be immediately appointed an attorney.
Income levels are determined based on the Federal poverty guidelines. A single parent with one child has to fall under 133% of the Federal poverty guidelines set for the County to qualify for full representation services. A single parent with two children must fall under 185% of the Federal poverty guidelines, and a parent with more than one child must fall under 235% of the guidelines to qualify for services.
The parent will have to provide proof of income through tax returns and pay stubs to determine whether he or she qualifies for services. If a parent is awarded financial assistance or Public Assistance through the Department of Social Services, the State and County will pay the attorney fees.

How is a Court Appointed Attorney’s Fee Amount Determined?

The cost of hiring an attorney through a court appointment varies from case to case, and from jurisdiction to jurisdiction. The reason for this variance is that not all courts have a budget for such appointments. In those that do, the attorneys taking these cases are typically compensated through the county, and the amount on an hourly basis is usually determined by the county. Some counties or judges may not have guidelines for the attorneys that the courts are forced to appoint for people, and so the costs will be different based upon the judge appointing the attorney.
The type of case for which the person the judge appoints has the following costs: The types of fees and how the courts assign them also rarely include costs for pre-trial work by the court-appointed attorney. Again, this is not universal, but most judges do not allow for the attorney to be paid for time that they spend preparing for court in either a civil or criminal case, unless the attorney is court-appointed in the first court appearance.
Also, not all courts provide all services or have all types of attorneys that are appointed by the judge. Most areas will have a small number of attorneys that the judges regularly appoint who are familiar with both the court system and with the judges.
Criminal cases are handled differently than civil cases because the court is required to make sure that everyone has a right to an attorney even if they cannot afford one. This reduces the cost risks a bit, whereas in the civil system there are rarely public defenders who are appointed to civil clients.
The nature of the case is also a factor. Appointing an attorney for a real estate case is more difficult than an ordinary divorce, for example, or for a contract dispute. The nature of the case also determines whether or not the attorney receives something known as a retainer on top of the hourly rate set forth in the appointment. For criminal cases, the court pays the attorneys by the hour along with expenses. In some jurisdictions the sorts of things that could be billed for time to go to jail to meet clients, for example, are not paid for in the hourly rate.

Attorney Costs by State

In addition to the three methods for calculating attorney fees that are contemplated by the IOLTA statute (the hourly rate, flat fee, and fixed fee), there are still other variations in the way that hourly rates, flat fees, and fixed fees are computed and applied to a particular case. These variations may be influenced by the stage of the case, the geographic location, and various other factors. An example is a "step-down" adopted by the State of Oregon, where attorneys who represent indigent clients are allowed to step down the hourly rate and the flat fee after 10 hours of representation, as this is approximately the average time that is spent on assigned cases statewide. According the Oregon Public Defender Services Commission website, this adjustment allows appointed attorneys to provide effective representation according to actual time spent.
Although Oregon has adopted the step-down method, there is wide variation in the rates charged by appointed attorneys in the state. Depending on location, the rates range from $45-$100/hr in the state’s 18 judicial districts – and fees are still being disputed based on the hourly rates that have been adopted. Some counties pay the lowest fees, even though they have significantly higher caseloads, where other counties pay the highest rates, despite lower caseloads. Despite the inequities created by the current fee structure , the current fee schedule has been in effect since the early 1980s and has not been completely reviewed since 1998. Oregon Public Defender Services Commission website.
Other states have an "all-in" rate under which defense attorneys must agree to be paid for all work on a case, with no extra payment for court or travel time, which is then capped at a number of hours. For example, in Idaho, the fixed fee for felonies is $3037.50 (and $425.00 for misdemeanors), inclusive of 17 hours of work (including court time). Idaho Office of the Public Defender. In New Mexico, the hourly rate for district court and court of appeals cases is $85.00 per hour (and $60 per hour for lower court cases). However, there is a $2000 maximum fee, with the exception of request for extraordinary expenses. New Mexico Public Defender Department (2000); New Mexico Fixed Fees for Indigent Defense.
Several other states are worth noting. In Maryland, currently, hourly rates for private assigned counsel are set at $40 for non-city counties up to $95 in the city of Baltimore. Maryland Office of the Public Defender. In Missouri, appointed attorneys agree to take cases for a flat fee, which is then adjusted for location. Missouri State Public Defender. In Tennessee, appointed trial attorneys are compensated at an hourly rate up to $75, with a maximum fee cap of $1,000 for cases involving misdemeanors or juvenile court issues and $1,500 for felony cases. Tennessee Administrative Office of the Courts (Rule 13, section 3-2.5).

Can You be Forced to Pay a Court-Appointed Attorney?

After winning their case, many indigent defendants are surprised to learn that they may have to reimburse the government for some or all of their attorney’s fees. They may have assumed that a public defender is like a public school teacher, someone charged with providing a service without expectation of reimbursement. However, in criminal cases at least, the US and New York Supreme Courts have consistently held that public defenders are being paid for their services, as evidenced by the fact that some jurisdictions even pay private lawyers to represent indigent defendants.
Under 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(f), U.S. District Courts have the option of determining whether an indigent defendant is able to pay his or her attorney’s fees. The defendant’s financial statement (Form CJA 23) may be used to determine whether the defendant is financially unable to obtain the resources to provide for his or her own legal counsel. If the court determines that the individual is able to afford their attorneys fees, the defendant will then be required to reimburse the government. After a hearing, the court will set the fee. Counsel shall be compensated for time spent by the individual in the proceedings on behalf of the defendant including making a defense and pursuing punitive counterclaims against the prosecution for malicious prosecution, prosecutorial abuse, and wrongful arrest. In some circumstances, the defendant may be ordered during supervised release to make periodic payments of all or part of the amount of the attorney’s fees.
In New York, any defendant who receives assignment of counsel pursuant to Judiciary Law § 722-b must file an affidavit or financial statement form attesting to his or her inability to retain counsel, including all sources of income. The court will conduct a financial inquiry and verify the defendant’s affidavit. Under Judiciary Law § 722-d, if a defendant is determined to have A) enough financial resources to provide for an attorney without causing substantial hardship to the defendant or other members of his or her household, and B) received assignment of counsel on the basis of a financial hardship determination, the court may order the defendant to reimburse the county for the reasonable value of the services rendered by counsel for the benefit of the defendant. If the defendant is indigent throughout the case, the obligations ends at the conclusion of the case, including appeal.
If the defendant was convicted of a felony and does not have sufficient present ability to pay, and will not have sufficient ability in the future to pay without substantial hardship to the defendant or the defendant’s family or dependents, then the defendant will not be required to pay back any amount for their defense.

Court Appointed Attorney Alternatives

If you do not qualify for a court-appointed attorney, there are options available for those who cannot afford an attorney. Private attorneys may take a case on a pro bono basis (for the public good) and charge no fee. An attorney may request relief from the Court to be appointed pro bono, or they may take the case on their own without making a request. There are also legal aid societies which can help individuals in need of legal assistance . New York, for example, has the Legal Aid Society of the City of New York, which has been in existence more than 130 years. They have a combined staff of over 5,000 professionals, including excellent trial lawyers who are dedicated to helping people in need navigate the legal system and, if needed, represent them in court. Also, the Federal Bar Association (FBA) has a section for every state in their network, which provides great resources for the public, and a way to ask a question of an attorney if no one else can answer your query.