Appendix for the Implementation and Management of the
Criminal Justice Act Panel
This Appendix sets forth the procedures for implementation and management of
the District of Colorado CJA Plan, as instructed in the Guide to Judiciary Policy’s Model
Plan for Implementation and Administration of the Criminal Justice Act, Vol. 7A.
I. ASSIGNMENT OF CASES TO THE PANEL
A. Solicitations and Responses: The CJA Supervisory Attorney will
generate a randomized list of Panel attorneys from the eVoucher
program to solicit acceptance of CJA appointments. The selected
attorney must respond to the solicitation as soon as possible. If the
selected attorney does not respond promptly, another attorney will
be selected.
B. Initial Appearances: No defendant unable to afford counsel should
be required to appear without counsel. Every effort will be made to
have a lawyer available for the initial appearance once the
Supervisory Attorney’s office is made aware of the need for counsel
from the Panel.
C. Entry of Appearance: The court will review each defendant’s
Form CJA 23 (application for court appointed counsel) at the initial
appearance. Once the Order Appointing Counsel is docketed,
counsel will be expected to file an Entry of Appearance.
II. BILLING AND PAYMENT PROCEDURES
Attorneys and authorized professionals must submit all requests for funding
approval and payments through the eVoucher system. Reference should be
made to the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 7A, found at
http://www.uscourts.gov/rules-policies/judiciary-policies/criminal-justice-act-
cja-guidelines, or at www.cocja.org.
A. Panel attorneys: The rate of Panel attorney compensation is
found in the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 7A, §230.16.
B. Commonly used support services:
1. Investigator: The investigator is responsible for the
investigation, from inception to conclusion of the
representation. General areas of investigation include
obtaining documents and records, collection and inspection
of evidence, interviewing witnesses and clients, reporting
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findings, and assisting in the preparation and management
of witnesses and evidence in court.
2. Paralegal: The paralegal provides paper and electronic
discovery management, exhibit management, ESI and
litigation platform management, preparation for
hearings/trial, and in-court litigation support.
3. Interpreters: The Administrative Office of the United States
Courts recognizes three skill levels of interpreters: 1)
federally certified interpreters; 2) professionally qualified
interpreters, and 3) language skilled interpreters. Rates of
pay will follow the rate of pay set through the AO. See
http://www.uscourts.gov/services-forms/federal-court-
interpreters.
4. Experts: Experts are professionals educated and trained in
matters outside the expertise of the Panel attorney.
Expertise may also include other areas of the law not
practiced by the Panel attorney.
C. Other Professional Support Services:
1. Co-counsel: Panel attorneys may seek authorization for
appointment of co-counsel. When seeking co-counsel, a
motion must be filed and approved with the presiding judge.
Co-counsel must be a member of the Panel. Once approved,
co-counsel will enter an appearance and function in every
capacity as the primary attorney. Because the government
has no standing or right to be informed of a request for co-
counsel, a motion seeking appointment of co-counsel should
be filed as a restricted document.
2. Authorized co-counsel must enter an appearance and bill
separately for hours through an eVoucher Form CJA 20 as a
separate representation.
3. Research and writing attorney: The research and writing
attorney is a licensed attorney who researches legal issues
and drafts motions and briefs, regardless of whether those
motions and briefs are ultimately filed. The research and
writing attorney does not enter an appearance and may not
serve as a substitute for co-counsel. Requests for a research
and writing attorney must be submitted by the Panel attorney
as a request for professional services through an eVoucher
AUTH, and must identify the hourly rate and a cap on fees.
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D. Requests for Service Providers:
1. Other than requests for co-counsel, requests for service
providers must be made through the eVoucher AUTH form.
2. To ensure timely and accurate communications with non-
English speaking clients, Panel attorneys should, upon
appointment, immediately submit an eVoucher AUTH
seeking interpreter services. Additionally, attorneys are
strongly advised to propose a preliminary budget for
interpreter services over the life of a case.
3. When seeking authorization of any service provider, Panel
attorneys must include the proposed hourly rate. Attorneys
are also encouraged to submit a preliminary cap on the fees
of each service provider.
E. Billing in Excess of the Statutory Cap: Attorneys must seek
authorization to bill in excess of a statutory cap on fees. Requests
to exceed the statutory cap must be made through eVoucher Form
CJA 26. Attorneys are advised to track billing and submit the CJA
26 before a cap is exceeded. As a matter of established practice,
and in cases not governed by a budget through the Tenth Circuit
Case Budgeting Attorney, requests to exceed the existing cap
should propose a new cap on fees. To that end, attorneys are
strongly encouraged to propose new caps in $10,000.00
increments.
F. When to Bill: Interim billing is permitted in all cases. Requests for
payment may be submitted every 90 days or every $3,000.00,
whichever occurs first. As a best practice, requests for final
payments should be entered into eVoucher within 45 days of the
final disposition of the case. However, it is recognized that the “final
disposition” of a case may not always be definitive. Additionally,
press of other immediate business may also cause unavoidable
billing delays. Attorneys should be prepared to provide, without
violating client confidences, reasons for billing delays.
G. Approved Expenses: CJA Panel attorneys may seek
reimbursement for out-of-pocket expenses reasonably incurred.
Expenses must be itemized and reasonably documented in
eVoucher. For guidance on reimbursable expenses, attorneys must
review the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol. 7A, §230.63.
Panel attorneys and other professionals may not seek payment for
or reimbursement of general office overhead or clerical expenses.
For guidance on non-reimbursable expenses, attorneys must
review the Guide to Judiciary Policy, Vol.7A, §230.63.
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H. Travel: CJA Panel attorneys and other professionals may be
reimbursed only for necessary and reasonable travel for those
hours actually spent in or awaiting transit. Attorneys must review
the detailed instructions on reimbursable travel expenses found in
the Guide to Judiciary Police, Vol. 7A, §230.60. Additionally,
attorneys must follow the following practices related to travel
arrangements and billing:
1. Travel to the courthouse, jail, or other location for more than
one case should be pro-rated and divided among the cases.
Indication of the proration should be noted on the bill and in
eVoucher.
2. Reimbursement for mileage shall be at the rate established
by the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts.
3. Travel by airline must be arranged through National Travel
after approval in eVoucher is processed.
a. When booking reservations, National Travel must be
notified of the voucher number for the approved
funds.
b. Approval for airline travel must be sought as soon as
practicable.
4. Attorneys are responsible for timely cancellation of any flight
and hotel when the travel commitment cannot be met.
5. Attorneys shall provide written notice to the CJA Supervisory
Attorney of any travel reservations missed and not
cancelled.
III. TRAINING REQUIREMENTS
CJA Panel attorneys are expected to remain current with developments in
federal criminal defense law, practice, and procedure. The District of
Colorado Criminal Justice Act Plan (eff. 7/20/2016) requires:
During each year of a three-year term, a CJA Panel attorney shall
attend at least six hours of continuing legal education instruction
presented by either the Federal Public Defender or the Standing
Committee.
1. For this section, terms begin June 1 and end May 31.
2. Training offered in whole or part by the Federal Defender
Organization will be honored as training sponsored by the
Federal Public Defender or Standing Committee.
3. To ensure accurate recording of training required by the
District of Colorado CJA Plan, attorneys should upload
certifications of attendance to eVoucher, and enter the hours
attended in the User Profile.
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4. In addition to the above requirements, Panel attorneys are
strongly encouraged to attend training programs sponsored
by the Defender Services Training Division, the United
States Sentencing Commission, and other entities offering
training relevant to federal criminal defense practices.
IV. ESTABLISHMENT OF PANEL MENTORING PROGRAM
A mentoring program is established to provide opportunities for attorneys
seeking exposure and training under the Criminal Justice Act.
A. Mentee Attorneys
1. A mentee attorney must be admitted to practice and in good
standing in the United States District Court for the District of
Colorado. Mentee Attorneys are not members of the Panel
and therefore will not be compensated under the Criminal
Justice Act.
2. The mentee attorney will not enter her or his appearance
and shall not sign pleadings as primary counsel or appear in
court without the presence of the mentor attorney.
3. A mentee attorney may not address the court or actively
participate in court proceedings without the permission of the
presiding judge and the Panel attorney.
4. The CJA Supervisory Attorney will oversee assignments of
mentee attorneys to Panel attorneys. A mentee attorney will
not be assigned to the Panel attorney without the Panel
attorney’s consent.
B. Mentor Panel Attorneys
1. The mentor Panel attorney will supervise all work performed
by the mentee attorney.
2. The CJA Supervisory Attorney will maintain a list of Panel
attorneys willing to participate in this program.
V. MISDEMEANOR PANELS
A misdemeanor and petty offense Panel will be established to serve the
docket in Denver. Misdemeanor and petty offense Panels in Grand Junction,
Colorado Springs, and Durango are already in existence and will be
maintained.
APPROVED BY THE COURT in Denver, Colorado this 10th day of July 2019.
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