GENERAL ORDER NO. 50
CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT PROCEDURES FOR
ATTORNEY COMPENSATION AND FUNDING FOR NEEDED SERVICES
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT FOR THE NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
I. VOUCHER SUBMISSIONS AND APPROVAL
A. Introduction
The following policies and procedures are applicable to representations
for attorneys appointed under the Criminal Justice Act, 18 U.S.C. § 3006A
(referred to herein as the “CJA”), death-eligible and capital habeas
representations for attorneys appointed under 18 U.S.C. § 3005 or
§ 3599(a), and payment for investigative, expert and other services.
Claims and payments shall be made in accordance with the provisions as
set forth herein, Volume 7 of the Guide to Judiciary Policy, the CJA Plan of
the United States District Court for the Northern District of California
(General Order 2, referred to herein as the “Plan”),the fiscal policies of the
Administrative Office of the United States Courts, the policies of the Ninth
Circuit Judicial Council, the CJA Policy Manual for the Northern District
of California, the Ninth Circuit Compensability Handbook, and any other
guidelines that may be implemented by the CJA Administration
Committee.
Questions about this general order should be directed to the Court’s CJA
Unit (
[email protected]).
B. Court Compensation Policies
1. Providing fair compensation to appointed counsel is a critical
component of the administration of justice. CJA panel attorneys must
be compensated for time expended in court and time reasonably
expended out of court and reimbursed for expenses reasonably
incurred. In determining the reasonableness of out-of-court time, the
court must consider three factors:
a. whether the work was performed;
b. whether the work performed was a reasonable means of achieving
the client’s aims in the litigation; and
c. whether the time spent to accomplish that work was reasonable.
2. Voucher reductions will be limited to mathematical errors; instances in
which work billed was not compensable, undertaken, or completed;
and instances in which the hours billed clearly exceed what was
reasonably required to complete the task.
1
3. Vouchers and funding requests for service providers and other
litigation costs will not be delayed or reduced to lessen Defender
Services program costs in response to adverse financial circumstances.
4. Absent extraordinary circumstances, the Court will act on
compensation claims within 30 days of submission.
5. Payment vouchers and amounts paid to counsel or serviceproviders
will not be disclosed except as required by law or CJA Guidelines.
C. Claim Submission
1. Claims for compensation must be submitted on the appropriate CJA
form through the Court’s eVoucher system. Information regarding
eVoucher is available at cand.uscourts.gov/cja/evoucher.
The following forms are only available through eVoucher:
CJA-20—Attorney voucher in a criminal case or other representations
including grand jury witness and supervised release violations
CJA-21—Expert and service provider voucher in a criminal case or
other representations including grand jury witness and supervised
release violations
CJA-26—Statement for a Compensation Claim in Excess of the
Statutory Case
Compensation Maximum
CJA-30—Attorney voucher in a capital (death-eligible) case or capital
habeas representation.
CJA-31—Expert and service provider voucher in a capital (death-
eligible) case or capital habeas representation.
All other forms referred to in this General Order can be found at
cand.uscourts.gov/cja/forms.
2. Claims for compensation must be submitted no later than 60 days
after final disposition of the case, unless good cause is shown.
D. Delegated Authority for Claim Approval
This Court has delegated to the CJA Supervising Attorney the authority
to approve vouchers and authorize payment as follows:
1. Vouchers for attorney services;
2. Vouchers for interpreters, investigators, and paralegals requesting
payment for less than the prevailing waivable case compensation
maximum provided in the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Volume 7A,
Ch.3, §310.20.10(A) or that are within pre-authorized funding
limits in all felony, misdemeanor, non-capital habeas,and other
criminal proceedings;
1 Once a case is designated as capital, even if de-authorized, the attorney will use the CJA-30/CJA-31
throughout the representation.
2
3. Vouchers for all other service providers requesting payment under
the current statutorily imposed limit provided in the Guide to Judiciary
Policy, Volume 7A, Ch.3, §310.20.30(A)or that are within funding limits
pre-authorized by the assigned Judge in felony, misdemeanor, non-
capital habeas, and other criminal proceedings;
4. Vouchers for attorneys and service providers in capital habeas cases
in which the expenditures were previously authorized in a budget
that was approved by the assigned Judge; and
5. Vouchers for transcript services, interpreter services, and routine
travel.
The Court retains ultimate review and approval authority.
E. Interim Vouchers
Prior to the completion of the case, any attorney providing representation
under the CJA may submit interim vouchers for payment of fees and
reimbursement of allowable expenses
Interim vouchers should be submitted every 60 days unless the voucher
amount is less than $1,400.
F. Final Vouchers
1. For completed cases and cases in which the services of the CJA
attorney have been terminated for any reason, vouchers must be
submitted no later than 60 days after the attorney ceases representation
without regard to the amount of the claim or the date of any
previously submitted interim voucher.
2. Attorneys must provide good cause to justify payment of any voucher
submitted more than 60 days after representation is completed.
G. Statutory Maximums
When compensation exceeds, or is expected to exceed, the statutory
maximums permitted under 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(d)(3), the attorney must
submit a CJA-26 through eVoucher showing why payment in excess of the
statutory maximum is necessary to provide fair compensation to the
attorney.
H. Case Budgeting
1. Budget Forms:
Budgets should be submitted every 6 months and must be submitted
through the eVoucher system as attachments to a CJA-26 or
BUDGETAUTH. All budget forms are available at
cand.uscourts.gov/cja/forms.
3
2. Budgets are required in the following cases:
a. Complex Cases: Any case in which the case maximum is expected
to exceed 300 hours is considered a complex case. The attorney is
required to complete and submit a Confidential Ex Parte
Application for CJA Funds in a Complex Case.
b. Capital Cases: Any case where the defendant is “death-eligible” is
considered a capital case. The Lead Attorney is required to
complete and submit a Capital Case Funding Authorization.
c. Capital Habeas Cases: Lead Attorney is required to submit a
budget at each phase of the representation. Lead counsel is
required to complete and submit a:
1. Capital Habeas Funding Application; and
2. Capital Habeas Confidential Case Evaluation.
I. Details Required in Attorney Vouchers
Without violating the Canons of Ethics or disclosing attorney work
product, attorneys must include sufficient detail to permit meaningful
review. If a voucher contains insufficient detail for auditing purposes, it
will be returned to the attorney to resubmit with sufficient detail. To
provide sufficient detail, an attorney must:
1. Delineate discrete services. Separate, unrelated services may not be
“bundled” in one entry.
2. Describe witness interviews with sufficient information to distinguish
between individuals, e.g. “Witness 1” or “W1” or “witness A.K.”.
3. Identify the participants in telephone conversation or conferences and
general topics discussed.
4. Specify topics researched and the pleadings filed as a result ofthe
research by ECF docket number.
5. List the type of documents, number of pages reviewed, and Bates
numbers when review exceeds one hour. (e.g. FBI 302s, 77 pages
SC300-377).
J. Voucher Review Procedure
The CJA Department will perform an initial review for accuracy and
compensability under the CJA Guidelines and Ninth Circuit CJA Policies
and Procedures. In determining whether services provided by counsel are
compensable, the guidelines for ancillary appointment of counsel in
Section IV.A.3 of General Order 2, the Criminal Justice Act Plan, may be
considered. After this review, vouchers will be forwarded for
consideration and action by the presiding judge or his or her designee,
who will review claims for overall reasonableness.
4
K. Voucher Reductions and Independent Review Procedures
1. Reductions Claims for compensation under the CJA will not be
reduced without affording counsel notice and an opportunity to be
heard.
a. When contemplatinga voucher reduction, the CJA Department
will notify CJA counsel of any proposed reduction and offer
counsel the opportunity to justify the submission.
b. If counsel indicates that the reduction is not contested, or if no
response is received within ten days, the CJA Department will
process the reduced voucher.
c. If counsel responds and provides information justifying the
claimed time or expense, the voucher will be approved as
submitted.
2. Independent Review Procedures
a. Judicial Approval: The CJA Supervising Attorney must obtain the
approval of the assigned Judge for a proposed voucher reduction
greater than $375.
b. Fee Review Committee: A voucher reduction in excess of $375 may
be reviewed by the Fee Review Committee (FRC) at the request of
either the assigned Judge or the attorney. The attorney must
submit the request for review in writing to the CJA Supervising
Attorney. The assigned Judge will give significant weight to the
FRC’s recommendation in making a final determination.
Information regarding the Fee Review Committee can be found at
cand.uscourts.gov/cja/feereview.
L. No Receipt of Other Payment
Appointed counsel may not require, request, or accept any payment or
promise of payment or any other valuable consideration for
representation under the CJA, unless such payment is approved by
order of the Court.
II. Investigative, Expert, and Other Services; Litigation Expenses
Counsel for a person financially unable to obtain investigative, expert, or other
services necessary for an adequate defense may request CJA funding in an ex
parte application to the Court as provided in 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(e)(1), regardless
of whether counsel is appointed under the CJA. Upon finding that the services
are necessary, and that the person is financially unable to obtain them, the
presiding judge or designee must authorize the funding.
5
Cost Considerations. CJA counsel are expected to use lower-cost service
providers such as investigators or paralegals to undertake tasks not requiring
attorney expertise. In multi-defendant cases with multiple CJA attorneys,
counsel must make all reasonable efforts to coordinate with each other to reduce
costs, including coordinating and sharing discovery and utilizing shared
investigators and other services to the extent possible.
Attorneys are responsible for obtaining qualified experts and service providers
and for conducting careful review of experts’ and service providers’ bills to
assure that the charges are accurate and reasonable and that they contain
sufficient detail.
Delegation. This Court has delegated to the CJA Supervising Attorney the
authority to approve requests for associates, paralegals, interpreters, and
investigators.
A. Requests for Services
1. Applications To request funds for investigative, expert, and other
services, an attorney must submit a Funding Request by email to the
CJA Unit (
[email protected]). The Funding Request must provide
sufficient detail to demonstrate that the service is reasonably necessary,
the hourly rate charged by the provider, and that the estimated
number of hours needed to complete the work is reasonable. The
request must not be disclosed except with the consent of the person
represented or as required by law or CJA Guidelines.
2. Obtaining Services Without Prior Request
Attorneys may obtain investigative, expert or other services without
prior authorization if necessary for adequate representation under the
following circumstances:
a. Interpreters, investigators, and paralegals: the total cost ofservices
for each such provider may not exceed the prevailing waivable
case compensation maximum provided in the Guide to Judiciary
Policy and Procedure, Volume 7A, Ch. 3, §310.20.10(A) plus the
cost of expenses reasonably incurred.
b. All other service providers: the total cost of services per case may
not exceed the statutorily imposed limit provided in the Guide
to Judiciary Policy and Procedure, Volume 7A, Ch. 3,
§310.20.30(A) the plus the costs of expenses reasonably incurred.
6
B. Nunc Pro Tunc Requests
If an attorney obtains services without seeking prior approval or the
service provider exceeds the specific terms of the funding authorization, as
soon as possible the attorney must submit a Funding Request justifying
the services, a request for nunc pro tunc authorization to the date services
were first rendered, and a thorough explanation of why prior
authorization could not have reasonably been obtained. Nunc pro tunc
requests to compensate service providers will be considered and
authorized only upon a showing of good cause, such as when a service not
previously contemplated required immediate action. If the assigned Judge
denies the request in whole or in part, the Court will not be liable for
refusal to pay for services rendered without prior approval or in excess of
authorized funds.
C. Payment to Experts and Service Providers
A separate voucher must be created in eVoucher for each expert or service
provider.
1. Paralegals, investigators, and mitigation specialists have access to
eVoucher and are required to enter their time directly into the system.
2. All other experts and service providers must submit their invoices to
the attorney.
3. Invoices should contain adequate detail of the services performed and
include supporting documentation.
4. Each invoice for expert and service provider services must be
accompanied by a Certificate of Service (“COS”) verifying services
invoiced.
5. The attorney is responsible for attaching the invoice, any
documentation, and the COS on behalf of the expert or service
provider to the voucher.
6. The attorney is responsible for reviewing and submitting the voucher
on behalf of all service providers.
7. Interpreters must use the CJA Interpreter Invoice.
D. Compliance.
Counsel must comply with Judicial Conference policies set forth in CJA
Guidelines, Ch. 3.
III. CJA DOCUMENTATION
A. Confidentiality
All CJA documents are filed in the confidential CJA financial files
maintained by the Clerk’s Office. Documents maintained in the CJA
financial files shall not be disclosed to the public except as provided by
statute, by the Guide to Judiciary Policy, or by order of the Court.
Accordingly, it is not necessary for the attorney to request sealing of CJA
documents.
7
B. Standardized Forms
Where the Administrative Office of the United States Courts provides
standard forms, such forms shall be used in connection with all actions
taken under the Plan and the provisions set forth herein.
IT IS SO ORDERED.
ADOPTED: June 30, 2000
AMENDED: October 16, 2000
April 24, 2001
June 18, 2002
March 15,2005
December 20, 2011
October 19, 2018
September 22, 2019
January 22, 2020
September 23, 2022
________________________________________
CHIEF JUDGE
UNITED STATES DISTRICT COURT
NORTHERN DISTRICT OF CALIFORNIA
FOR THE COURT FOR THE JUDICIAL
COUNCIL OF THE NINTH CIRCUIT:
DATE: December 5, 2022 _________________________________________
CHIEF JUDGE
NINTH CIRCUIT COURT OF APPEALS
8
