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Ad Hoc

If (a) you are not a contractor with our department and have been assigned a case by the court, or (b) you are a contractor but are assigned a case not covered by your contract, then you have received an "ad hoc" assignment per Administrative Order #4.

The First Thing To Do:

Please provide notice of the assignment to the Office of the Defender General. For criminal cases, we need the date of assignment, defendant's name, docket number(s), and the charges associated with each docket. For juvenile cases, we need the date of assignment, juvenile's initials, docket number(s), type of juvenile case, and who you represent (juvenile, mother, father, etc.). Please email a copy of the Notice of Assignment issued by the court to DG.AdHoc@vermont.gov. 

The Assigned Counsel Coordinator, who approves Ad Hoc expenditures, is Charlie Martin. He can be reached at:

Charles S. Martin
Assigned Counsel Coordinator
P.O. Box 607
Barre, Vermont 05641-0607
(802) 479-0568
(802) 479-5414 (fax)

The following Assigned Counsel Information includes both forms and documents explaining administrative procedures. Please share these materials with your secretary, bookkeeper, or other staff who have responsibilities concerning record keeping or completion of Expenditure Request Forms, Debentures, Case Reports, etc.

The Expenditure Request Form is intended for your form file. You must receive approval from the Assigned Counsel Coordinator before incurring any case-related third-party costs.  Use the Expenditure Request Form and send it directly to Charlie Martin.  NOTE: Both the name and address of service providers must be included on any request for services (investigators, expert witnesses, evaluators, etc.), along with their rate and anticipated cost.

The Witness Form is intended for your form file. Complete one for every deposition or court witness who you request (you must receive prior approval for the cost).  Send this form, as well as third-party invoices, directly to the Office of the Defender General, 6 Baldwin Street, 4th Floor, Montpelier, VT  05633-3301.

You must use the Debenture Form to submit your invoice for services at the conclusion of the case to the Assigned Counsel Coordinator. You must also complete either a Juvenile Case Report Form or Adult Case Report Form and submit it with the Debenture. These forms can also be found in the “FORMS” section of this web page.

Common Mistakes That Cost You Money

  1. You must ask for excess compensation before you put in the time in excess of limits set out for type of case in Administrative Order #4. Excess compensation requests will be rejected if submitted for the first time with final billing.
  2.  The debenture must be submitted within three months of closing the case. A debenture received more than three months after a case is closed will be automatically rejected.

Appellate Procedures

  1. Transcripts must be ordered directly from the designated court reporters, shown on the Judiciary’s website (Transcript Order Form & Instructions), not from court clerks.
  2.  A notice of appeal must be accompanied by an application for the services of appellate counsel. A client is not entitled to state-paid appellate representation until the trial court approves the application, except in juvenile cases.

Index

  1. Debenture Form - Instructions for Completion
  2. Deposition Memo (2/1/90)
  3. Expenditure Request Instructions
  4. General Procedures - Assigned Counsel Coordinator Instructions (7/25/94)
  5. Independent Evaluations Memo (7/94)
  6. Transcript Requests Memo – New Procedures
  7. Transcript (Depositions) Format
  8. Transcriber (Depositions) List

Forms You May Need

  1. Adult Case Report
  2. Appeal Referral Form
  3. Debenture Form-Fillable PDF
  4. Expenditure Request Form-Fillable PDF  (see instructions above)
  5. Juvenile Case Report Form
  6. Witness Form