The U.S. District Court is seeking counsel to serve on its Criminal Justice Act (CJA) Panel. Attorneys interested in receiving Federal Appointments must apply by February 28, 2020. Applications are available online.
ANNOUNCEMENT FOR PRESENT AND PROSPECTIVE MEMBERS OF THE
COLUMBUS, DAYTON AND CINCINNATI PANELS OF CRIMINAL JUSTICE ACT ATTORNEYS
Pursuant to the Criminal Justice Act Plan adopted by the United States District Court for the Southern District of Ohio, the United States District Court is soliciting applications from members of the bar of this Court who wish to serve as appointed counsel for indigent criminal defendants under the Criminal Justice Act (CJA), 18 U.S.C. § 3006A, for the Columbus, Dayton and Cincinnati locations of the Court.
Application form. All applicants must complete the approved application form, which can be found on the Court’s website, www.ohsd.uscourts.gov. A hard copy of the application form may also be obtained from the Clerk of Court by telephoning 614-719-3000 (Columbus), 937-512-1400 (Dayton) or 513-564-7500 (Cincinnati), or by requesting an application by mail addressed to: Clerk, United States District Court, Joseph P. Kinneary Courthouse, 85 Marconi Blvd., Room 260, Columbus, OH 43215 (Columbus); Clerk, United States District Court, Federal Building, Room 712, 200 West Second Street, Dayton, OH 45402 (Dayton); or Clerk, United States District Court, 100 E. Fifth St., Room 103, Cincinnati, OH 45202 (Cincinnati). Existing panel members must complete an application if they wish to be considered for continued membership on the CJA Panel. Continued membership is not guaranteed, and the Court will seriously consider applications from highly qualified attorneys who are not currently members of the Columbus, Dayton or Cincinnati CJA Panel.
Application deadline. The deadline for submitting an application is February 28, 2020.
Qualifications. All applicants must meet the qualifications set forth in the Criminal Justice Act Plan, Section VI(a)(2). Any member of the existing Columbus, Cincinnati or Dayton CJA panel can expect to receive and is expected to accept between three and five appointments annually for defendants facing new felony charges and to serve as mentors if requested by the Court. Attorneys whose practice would not permit this volume of representation should consider whether they wish to become a member of the Columbus, Cincinnati or Dayton CJA panel.
Selection process. All applications will be reviewed initially by the Columbus, Cincinnati or Dayton CJA Committee, which, under the Plan, consists of a Magistrate Judge, a representative of the Federal Public Defender’s Office, the CJA Panel Attorney representative, and, for purposes of reviewing applications for panel membership, may also include one or more attorneys in private practice who are not applicants for membership on the panel. The Committee may choose to interview applicants as part of this process. The final selection of panel attorneys will be made by the Columbus, Cincinnati and Dayton District Judges.
Size of Panel. The CJA panels will be set at a number that insures each panel member will likely be assigned to one or more cases per year.
Term of appointment. Panel members will serve for approximately three years and the Court may, from time to time, increase or decrease the size of the panel or alter its membership or remove panel members in accordance with Sections VI(A)(7) and (9) of the Criminal Justice Act Plan. The Court intends to reconstitute the panel every three years.
Equal opportunity. This Court is committed to providing an equal opportunity for qualified attorneys to be members of its CJA panel without regard to race, color, religion, sex, age, national origin or disabling condition.