Qualitative Assessments of Effective Assistance of Counsel (2012)

ABSTRACT & CITATION

Defenders have often relied on quantitative measurements, particularly of their caseloads, to support their arguments for greater resources. The author of this piece traces most of the current national and local caseload standards back to those promulgated by the National Advisory Commission on Criminal Justice Standards and Goal (NAC) in 1973. Aside from their age, he critiques these standards as suffering from definitional issues; for instance, each kind of “case” may be defined differently and require a different allocation of resources across jurisdictions. Perhaps more problematically, the standards were not based on any empirical research. Some states have devoted considerable resources to performing their own research, but have so far seen limited success in the form of additional defense funding. Anderson argues that that is due to the general economic recession, which leaves members of every profession burdened by their own sorts of “excessive caseloads,” and thus unmoved by defenders’ pleas. He recommends that indigent defense reform instead be framed in terms of qualitative measurements, unique to the attorney’s role; a useful source of these measurements would be ethical rules, especially those barring conflicts of interest. Anderson perceives more success where defenders have used these sorts of appeals, which, he points out, strike closer to the heart of the issue of “effective assistance.”

Anderson, H. R. (2012). Qualitative Assessments of Effective Assistance of Counsel. Washburn Law Journal, 51, 3, 571-587.