More than 50 private attorneys and contractors in New Mexico announced on Wednesday that they will stop taking new cases where they would represent federal defendants who cannot afford their own lawyers, citing a funding crisis that has left them unpaid since early July. SeeReuters news article.
In a letter to the Chief United States District Judge in New Mexico, the lawyers said the funding crisis means they cannot take on additional cases while ensuring effective representation for their current clients "consistent with our professional and ethical obligations.”
Contractors who are also paid out of CJA funding, which covers the costs of expert witnesses, interpreters and other service providers, also signed the letter.
It appeared to mark the first time that court-appointed attorneys for indigent defendants have collectively decided to cease accepting new cases as a result of a funding shortfall that has been exacerbated by the ongoing federal government shutdown.
In their letter, the lawyers emphasized that their decision was not directly tied to the government shutdown.
Once the shutdown ends, the judiciary will be able to access newly appropriated funds to make the long-delayed payments they are owed. But under pending spending legislation in Congress, the CJA program would again likely run out of money next year.
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