California: National Standards Applied Through a Management Audit

Although some guidelines have been promulgated by the state bar and the California Public Defenders Association, each county is free to set its own standards.

Although Riverside County has not adopted indigent defense standards, national standards have been useful in helping the public defender office obtain additional funding. An extensive management audit of the public defender s office in 1987 raised questions about the leadership capabilities of the management team, attorney-client relationships, staffing levels, computerized management systems, funding levels, parity levels with the D.A. s office, and other issues. In 1999, a comprehensive management audit based on national standards was conducted by a seven-person team from the National Legal Aid and Defender Association, raising many of the same questions as the 1987 audit. The public defender s office used the 1999 audit to its advantage in discussions with Riverside County s Board of Supervisors, using the report to demonstrate the office s excessive caseload, and lack of staffing and training. As a result, the office received additional funding and the caseload in one branch was reduced from 2,100 cases per year per lawyer to 1,300. Although that reduction fell far short of the NLADA/ABA standards of 400 misdemeanor or 150 felony cases per year per lawyer, it was a start. The public defender s office is still seeking to reduce caseload levels, viewing these efforts as part of a multiyear process.

An audit also can be helpful in changing the culture of an office. In Riverside, the audit, which included a 75-question survey of all employees and invited their comments about problems, encouraged staff members to confront the problems and be part of the solution in handling them.

The staff also has been responsive and eager to participate in in-house training programs, such as computer training and mock courtrooms.

From Redefining Leadership for Equal Justice: Final Report of the National Symposium on Indigent Defense 2000 (Office of Justice Programs/Bureau of Justice Assistance, U.S. Department of Justice, 2001), at 15-16. (pdf document)

Get more information on NLADA audits of public defense programs.

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