l. Duties of Attorney Seeking Review of Trial Court's Order

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1 MODEL RULES FOR THE APPEAL OF A TRIAL COURT'S DISAPPROVAL OF REQUESTED COURT APPOINTED ATTORNEY'S FEE ADMINISTRATIVE JUDICIAL REGION OF TEXAS l. Dutie of Attorney Seeking Review of Trial Court' Order An attorney who chooe to appeal the trial court' diapproval of the requeted attorney' fee hall file a motion with the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region within twenty (20) day of the trial court' igning of an order diapproving the requeted court appointed attorney' fee. The appealing attorney hall et forth in hi motion the following information: 1. The caue number, tyle and caption of the cae; 2. The type and claification of the offene; 3. The date that the attorney wa appointed; 4. The date on which the cae wa dipoed; 5. Whether the cae wa dipoed of by dimial, a plea, a bench trial, or a jury trial; 6. The date and the length tenth of an hour. if the upon an hourly fee; 7. The date of each office conference or jail conference and the of each court appearance within the nearet oneattorney i requeting to be compenated baed time pent within the nearet one{enth of an hour; 8. A copy of any itemization ubmitted to the trial court for the purpoe of payment including a tatement of each date a ervice wa rendered, the iype of ervice rendered, the time expended in the rendering of aid ervice, the expene incurred, and a tatement explaining any attached vendor' invoice or expert' ervice invoice; L Any factor that required unuual effort on the attorney' part to overcome in the repreentation of the defendant including but not limited to: need for an interpreter, uncharged crime and Penal Code Sec iue, multiple defendant, etc.; 10. The date that the fee order the ubject of the motion wa igned; 11. A detailed tatement by the attorney explaining how the trial court' order diapproving the requeted court appointed attorney' fee deviated from the county' approved fee chedule adopted under the Texa Fair Defene Act. The appealing attorney hall attach the following document to the motion:

2 ll. 1. A copy of the trial court' order diapproving the requeted court appointed attorney' fee, if any; and 2. A copy of the county' attorney fee chedule adopted puruant to the Texa Fair Defene Act. Procedure The appealing attorney hall file the original of the motion with the clerk of the court in which tire cai i pending, and hall file a certified copy of the motion with the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region and with the trial court. The Preiding Judle of the Adminitrative Judicial Region hall abate any ruling on the motion for a peri6d of not le than ten (10) day from the filing of the motion pending an opportunity for further review by the trial court. After receiving the motion, the trial court may enter a revied payment order within the ten ('lo) day feriod following the filing of the motion. The trial court hall file a copy of tne ievieci payment order with the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region. lf a revied payment order i entered reolving the dipute to the atifaction of the appealing attorney, the attorney hall file with the Preiding Judge a notice withdrawing ttie appeit. The motion willthen be deemed moot and no further action will be taken by the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region. lf the trial court' revied payment older doe not fully reolve the iue to the atifaction of the appealing attorney, the attorney hall, within five (5) day of the igning of the trial court' revied payment order, file with the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region and the trial court a notice tating that the matter remain ubject to contet. The attorney hall attach a copy of the trial court' revied payment order to aid notice. The trial court hall, within five (5) day of the filing of the notice of contet, file written finding that et forth in detail the reaon() for diapproving the requeted attorney' fee. The finding hould ubtantially comply with the form attached a Appendix A. lf the trial court doe not enter a revied payment order, the trial court hall, within five (5) day of the filing of the motion, file written finding that et forth in detail the reaon() for diapproving the requeted attorney' fee. The finding hould ubtantially comply with the form attached a Appendix A. lf the Preiding Judge of the Adminitrative Judicial Region ha not received notice of a reolution of the appeal prior to the expiration of ten (10) day from the filing of the motion, the Preiding Judge hall rule on the motion in accordance with the proviion of 26.05(c), Texa Code of Criminal Procedure. The Preiding Judge hall ign an order that ubtantially conform to the form order attached a Appendix B. 2

3 APPENDIX A NO. THE STATE OF TEXAS v. IN THE OF COURT COUNTY, TEXAS Trial court, written Finding Regarding Requeted court Appointed Attorney' Fee On thi day of the Court, after reviewing the above tyled and nurnbered cae, find that the requeted amount of payment by in the amount of $ i not reaonable and therefore i diapproved for the following reaon(). -, E The Court find that the requeted fee exceed the Court' approved fee chedule. D The Court find that the attorney ha failed to provide to the Court an itemized document efting forth billable attorney' hour and/or expene. E The Court find that the attorney ha ubmitted an hourly rate that exceed the rate etablihed by the fee chedule. 0 The Court find that the attorney ha ubmitted an itemized tatement that record unauthorized expene, to-wit: D tr tr The Court find that the time and labor required, the lack of novelty and difficulty of the quetion involved and the kill requiite to properly perform the legal ervice do not jutify the requeted fee. The Court find that the requeted payment exceed the fee cutomarily charged in the locality for imilar legal ervice. The Court find that the nature and length of the profeional relationhip with the client doe not jutify the requeted fee.

4 O The Court find that the requeted payment of fee a ubmitted by the attorney i not upported for the following reaon: D other: The Court find that an attorney' fee in the amount of $ hould be paid to aid attorney a fair and jut compenation for the attorney' fee in the cae. SIGNED the day of - -,20-. JUDGE PRESIDING 2

5 APPENDIX B NO. THE STATE OF TEXAS VS. IN THE OF COURT COUNTY, TEXAS Order on Motion to Review Diapproval of Requeted Court Appointed Attorney' Fee On thi day, came on for conideration the motion to review the diapproval of the requeted attorney' fee filed by court appointed counel for the Defendant in the above-entitled and numbered caue. After conidering the motion and other document filed, the following order i rendered. lt ls ORDERED that motion i GRANTED/DENIED. lf the motion i granted. lf ls FURTHER ORDERED that reaonable attorney' fee of $ hall be paid a lf the motion i denied. lt ls FURTHER ORDERED that the order for payment igned by the trial court on i AFFIRMED. Continue with the The Ditrict Clerk of Commiioner Court of applicable, furnih a copy@ditor.'' SIGNED on _,20_. County, Texa hall certify thi order to the Counly for it obervance and, if - PRESIDING JUDGE Adminitrative Judicial Region ' Not later than the 45tn day after the date an application for payment of a fee i ubmitted, the commiioner court hall pay to the appointed counel the amount that i approved by the preiding judge of the adminitrative judicial region and that i in accordance with the fee chedule for that county. Art (c), Texa Code of Criminal Procedure.

RULES FOR THE APPEAL OF A TRIAL COURT S DISAPPROVAL OF OR FAILURE TO ACT ON A REQUEST FOR PAYMENT OF COURT APPOINTED ATTORNEY S FEE

RULES FOR THE APPEAL OF A TRIAL COURT S DISAPPROVAL OF OR FAILURE TO ACT ON A REQUEST FOR PAYMENT OF COURT APPOINTED ATTORNEY S FEE SECOND ADMINISTRATIVE JUDICIAL REGION OF TEXAS I. Duties of Attorney