(1)On and after January 1, 1997, the office of alternate defense counsel shall contract,
where feasible, without prior approval of the court, for the provision of attorney
services for cases described in section 21-2-103 (1). To provide for adequate legal
representation of persons who are indigent, the office of alternate defense counsel
may contract, where feasible, without prior approval of the court, for the provision
of necessary legal services commensurate with those available to persons who are
not indigent for cases described in section 21-1-103 (1). The office of alternate
defense counsel shall establish, where feasible, a list of approved contract
attorneys to serve as counsel and a list of approved legal services providers to
provide services in such cases. As a condi
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(1)
On and after January 1, 1997, the office of alternate defense counsel shall contract,
where feasible, without prior approval of the court, for the provision of attorney
services for cases described in section 21-2-103 (1). To provide for adequate legal
representation of persons who are indigent, the office of alternate defense counsel
may contract, where feasible, without prior approval of the court, for the provision
of necessary legal services commensurate with those available to persons who are
not indigent for cases described in section 21-1-103 (1). The office of alternate
defense counsel shall establish, where feasible, a list of approved contract
attorneys to serve as counsel and a list of approved legal services providers to
provide services in such cases. As a condition of placement on the approved list, the
contracting attorney or legal services provider shall agree to provide services
based on the terms to be established in a contract, at either a fixed fee established
by the office of alternate defense counsel or the hourly rate for reimbursement set
by the supreme court. Terms of the contract must be negotiated between the
alternate defense counsel and the contract attorney or legal services provider.
Contracts made pursuant to this section must specify that the services must be
provided subject to the Colorado rules of professional conduct.
(2) (a) Contracts made pursuant to this section must provide for reasonable
compensation and reimbursement for expenses necessarily incurred, to be fixed
and paid from state funds appropriated therefor. The office of alternate defense
counsel shall review the bills submitted for reimbursement by any contractor and
may approve or deny the payment of such bills in whole or in part based on the
terms set forth in the contract negotiated between the alternate defense counsel
and the contractor.
(b) The rate contracted for attorney time pursuant to subsection (2)(a) of this
section for fiscal year 2023-24 is one hundred dollars per hour for cases involving a
type B felony as referenced in attachment D to chief justice directive 04-04 and as
modified by the gradations found in attachment D to chief justice directive 04-04.
That hourly rate must be increased annually by no more than five dollars each year
until the hourly rate is at least seventy-five percent of the rate set pursuant to the
federal Criminal Justice Act Revision of 1986, 18 U.S.C. sec. 3006A, as amended,
for indigent representation in federal court. That hourly rate may be adjusted in
subsequent fiscal years to maintain the hourly rate at or above seventy-five percent
of the rate set pursuant to the federal Criminal Justice Act Revision of 1986, 18
U.S.C. sec. 3006A, as amended, for indigent representation in federal court.
(3) Colorado relies primarily on an independent contractor model of legal
representation for court-appointed adult and youth representation in accordance
with this section when the public defender's office has a legal conflict of interest.
While the office of the alternate defense counsel provides some legal
representation for indigent individuals on some cases through state employees and
will continue to explore the use of state employee staff model solutions where
feasible, Colorado's need for conflict-free indigent defense counsel cannot be filled
or provided statewide by direct employees of the office of the alternate defense
counsel. For the purpose of determining eligibility for federal public service loan
forgiveness, any independent contractor, including, but not limited to, a resource
advocate, an investigator, a case assistant, an attorney, a social worker, a paralegal,
or a legal researcher, who is currently providing or has previously provided legal
services or services through an interdisciplinary legal team has a conflict in
providing these services as a state employee. The director of the office of the
alternate defense counsel or the director's designee is authorized to sign a
certification for any current or past independent contractor that certifies that the
contractor appears to be eligible for federal public service loan forgiveness as
allowed by federal law or regulations. With the authorization of an independent
contractor, the director of the office of the alternate defense counsel or the
director's designee may share information, including the contractor's name, social
security number or federal employer identification number, and the total number of
hours billed by the contractor by calendar year, with other independent judicial
agencies for the purpose of certifying apparent past, current, and future eligibility
for public service loan forgiveness allowed by federal law or regulations.