Text: HSB00538                          Text: HSB00540
Text: HSB00500 - HSB00599               Text: HSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

House Study Bill 539

Bill Text

PAG LIN
  1  1    Section 1.  Section 13B.4, subsection 2, Code Supplement
  1  2 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  1  3    2.  The state public defender shall file a notice with the
  1  4 clerk of the district court in each county served by a public
  1  5 defender a designation of which local designating which public
  1  6 defender office shall receive notice of appointment of cases.
  1  7 The state public defender may also designate a nonprofit
  1  8 organization which contracts with the state public defender to
  1  9 provide legal services to eligible indigent persons.  Except
  1 10 as otherwise provided, in each county in which the state
  1 11 public defender files such a designation, the state public
  1 12 defender or its defender's designee shall be appointed by the
  1 13 court to represent all eligible indigents, in all of the cases
  1 14 and proceedings specified under subsection 1 in the
  1 15 designation.  The appointment shall not be made if the state
  1 16 public defender notifies the court that the local public
  1 17 defender designee will not provide legal representation in
  1 18 certain cases as identified in the designation by the state
  1 19 public defender.
  1 20    Sec. 2.  Section 13B.4, subsection 3, Code Supplement 2003,
  1 21 is amended to read as follows:
  1 22    3.  The state public defender may contract with persons
  1 23 admitted to practice law in this state and nonprofit
  1 24 organizations employing persons admitted to practice law in
  1 25 this state for the provision of legal services to indigent
  1 26 persons.
  1 27    Sec. 3.  Section 13B.4, subsection 4, paragraph c,
  1 28 subparagraph (2), subparagraph subdivision (d), Code
  1 29 Supplement 2003, is amended to read as follows:
  1 30    (d)  If the appointment of the claimant was obtained
  1 31 without complying appointed contrary to section 814.11, or the
  1 32 claimant failed to comply with section 814.11, subsection 6,
  1 33 or section 815.10, subsection 5.
  1 34    Sec. 4.  Section 13B.9, subsection 4, Code Supplement 2003,
  1 35 is amended to read as follows:
  2  1    4.  If a conflict of interest arises or if the local public
  2  2 defender is unable to handle a case because of a temporary
  2  3 overload of cases, the local public defender shall return the
  2  4 case to the court.  If the case is returned and the state
  2  5 public defender has filed a successor designation, the court
  2  6 shall appoint the successor designee.  If there is no
  2  7 successor designee on file, the court shall make the
  2  8 appointment pursuant to section 815.10.  As used in this
  2  9 subsection, "successor designee" may include another local
  2 10 public defender office or a nonprofit organization that has a
  2 11 contract with the office of the state public defender for the
  2 12 provision of legal services to indigent persons contracted
  2 13 with the state public defender under section 13B.4, subsection
  2 14 3.
  2 15    Sec. 5.  Section 815.10A, Code 2003, is amended to read as
  2 16 follows:
  2 17    815.10A  CLAIMS FOR COMPENSATION.
  2 18    1.  An attorney other than a public defender who has been
  2 19 appointed by the court under this chapter must apply submit a
  2 20 claim to the state public defender for compensation and
  2 21 reimbursement of expenses incurred in the representation of an
  2 22 indigent person.
  2 23    2.  Claims for compensation and reimbursement submitted by
  2 24 an attorney appointed after June 30, 2004, are not considered
  2 25 timely unless the claim is submitted to the state public
  2 26 defender within forty-five days of the sentencing, acquittal,
  2 27 or dismissal of a criminal case or the final ruling or
  2 28 dismissal of any other type of case.
  2 29    2. 3.  An attorney shall obtain court approval prior to
  2 30 exceeding the fee limitations established by the state public
  2 31 defender pursuant to section 13B.4.  An attorney may exceed
  2 32 the fee limitations, if good cause for exceeding the fee
  2 33 limitations is shown.  An attorney may obtain court approval
  2 34 after exceeding the fee limitations, if good cause excusing
  2 35 the attorney's failure to seek approval prior to exceeding the
  3  1 fee limitations is shown.  However, failure to file an
  3  2 application to exceed a fee limitation prior to exceeding the
  3  3 fee limitation does not constitute good cause.  The order
  3  4 approving an application to exceed the fee limitations shall
  3  5 be effective from the date of filing the application unless
  3  6 the court order provides an alternative effective date.
  3  7 Failure to timely file an application to exceed a fee
  3  8 limitation after exceeding the fees shall not constitute good
  3  9 cause.  The application and the court order approving the
  3 10 application to exceed fee limitations and any other order
  3 11 affecting the amount of compensation or reimbursement shall be
  3 12 submitted with any claim for compensation.
  3 13    3. 4.  If the information is not submitted as required
  3 14 under this section and under the rules of the state public
  3 15 defender, the claim for compensation may be denied until the
  3 16 information is provided.  Upon submitting receipt of the
  3 17 required information, the state public defender may approve
  3 18 reasonable and necessary compensation, as provided for in the
  3 19 administrative rules and the law.
  3 20    Sec. 6.  Section 815.11, Code Supplement 2003, is amended
  3 21 to read as follows:
  3 22    815.11  APPROPRIATIONS FOR INDIGENT DEFENSE.
  3 23    Costs incurred under chapter 229A, 665, or 822, or section
  3 24 232.141, subsection 3, paragraph "c", or section 598.23A,
  3 25 814.9, 814.10, 814.11, 815.4, 815.7, 815.10, or 908.11 on
  3 26 behalf of an indigent shall be paid from funds appropriated by
  3 27 the general assembly to the office of the state public
  3 28 defender in the department of inspections and appeals for
  3 29 those purposes.  Costs incurred representing an indigent
  3 30 defendant in a contempt action, or representing an indigent
  3 31 juvenile in a juvenile court proceeding under chapter 600, are
  3 32 also payable from these funds.  However, costs incurred in any
  3 33 administrative proceeding or in any other proceeding under
  3 34 chapter 598, 600, 600A, 633, or 915 or other provisions of the
  3 35 Code or administrative rules are not payable from these funds.  
  4  1                           EXPLANATION
  4  2    This bill relates to payment of legal expenses for indigent
  4  3 persons by the state public defender.
  4  4    The bill provides that a nonprofit organization may
  4  5 contract with the state public defender to provide legal
  4  6 services to indigent persons.
  4  7    The bill provides that if an attorney has been retained or
  4  8 agreed to represent a person and subsequently applies to the
  4  9 court for appointment to represent the person as an indigent,
  4 10 then the attorney must provide the state public defender with
  4 11 any representation agreement, and information on any moneys
  4 12 earned prior to appointment by the court.  If the attorney
  4 13 fails to disclose any representation agreement or moneys
  4 14 earned prior to appointment, the state public defender may
  4 15 then deny the attorney's claim for attorney fees.
  4 16    The bill provides that an attorney's claim for compensation
  4 17 and reimbursement of expenses for representing an indigent
  4 18 person must be submitted to the state public defender within
  4 19 45 days of the sentencing, acquittal, or dismissal of a
  4 20 criminal case or the final ruling or dismissal of any other
  4 21 type of case.
  4 22    The bill provides that an attorney may apply to the court
  4 23 to exceed attorney fee limitations for representing an
  4 24 indigent person after the attorney has exceeded the fee
  4 25 limitations, if good cause excusing the attorney's failure to
  4 26 seek approval prior to exceeding the fee limitations is shown.
  4 27 The bill provides that failure to file an application to
  4 28 exceed a fee limitation prior to exceeding the fee limitation
  4 29 does not constitute good cause.
  4 30    The bill also provides that costs incurred representing an
  4 31 indigent defendant in a contempt hearing, and an indigent
  4 32 juvenile in an adoption proceeding under Code chapter 600 are
  4 33 payable from the indigent defense fund.  
  4 34 LSB 5287DP 80
  4 35 jm/sh/8
     

Text: HSB00538                          Text: HSB00540
Text: HSB00500 - HSB00599               Text: HSB Index
Bills and Amendments: General Index     Bill History: General Index

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