2006 Legislation

The 2007 Criminal Justice Funding Package: Improving the Criminal Justice System in Virginia


This year, the Governor, the Attorney General, and the Supreme Court of Virginia worked together with other criminal justice system stakeholders to develop a plan for improving Virginia's criminal justice system. Particular emphasis was placed on increasing indigent defense funding. The stakeholders included the Compensation Board, the Virginia Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the Virginia Bar Association, the Virginia Fair Trial Project, the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission, the Virginia State Bar and the Virginia Trial Lawyers Association.

The Governor has proposed a $12.9 million criminal justice package for FY2008. A critical part of this package is improving the collection of accurate information about the time it takes for lawyers to provide effective representation in court-appointed cases.


Court-Appointed Attorney Pay Waivers -- $ 9 million
HB 2361 (Putney) and SB 1168 (Stolle)

Virginia has the lowest, unwaiveable court-appointed fee caps (per charge) in the country.

  • This new funding permits payment above the existing fee caps for court-appointed representation. Attorneys requesting additional compensation will account for their time and effort by submitting detailed electronic vouchers. Fee cap waivers can be granted only if trial judges certify that the work was justified. After trial court review, the Executive Secretary of the Supreme Court conducts a final review of fee waiver requests and controls the allocation of waiver funding.


    • Indigent Defense Commission/Public Defenders -- $ 3.6 million

    The average annual turnover rate for public defenders in Virginia is 20 percent. Approximately one half of public defenders have less than two years of experience and one-third are in their first year of practice. Turnover and inexperience increase the costs of administering the public defender system and reduce the number of cases public defenders can handle.

  • Provides a salary increase of 10% in order to attract and retain qualified lawyers in the public defender system ($1.2 million).


  • Adds 16 attorneys to existing public defender offices and two administrative staff positions for the new Standards of Practice division of the Indigent Defense Commission ($1.5 million).


  • Provides eight new positions and a 25% salary increase to help attract and retain qualified counsel for Capital Public Defender Offices ($838,280).


    • Commonwealth's Attorneys -- $ 268,000

    Currently only 69 out of 241 entry-level assistant Commonwealth's Attorneys are funded for participation in the Career Prosecutor Program, which promotes professionalism, continuing education, high performances and salary incentives to reduce turnover.

  • Provides additional funding for the participation of 26 assistant Commonwealth's Attorneys in the Career Prosecutor Program in 18 offices statewide.



    • See also:

    HB 2361 Waiver on compensation cap for court-appointed attorneys.
    SB 1168 Waiver on compensation cap for court-appointed attorneys.
    Waiver Guidelines for Court-Appointed lawyers.