In accordance with the settlement agreement between the State of New York and a plaintiff class represented by the New York Civil Liberties Union in Hurrell-Harrina et at. v. State of New York and approved by the Albany County Supreme Court, the Office of Indigent Legal Services (ILS) is charged with developing and issuing criteria and procedures to guide courts in counties located outside of New York City in determining whether a person is unable to afford counsel and eligible for mandated representation.
In furtherance of this responsibility, ILS will conduct a series of public hearings in each of the nine (9) judicial districts outside of New York City to solicit the views of county officials, judges, institutional providers of representation, assigned counsel, current and former indigent legal services clients and other individuals, programs, organizations and stakeholders interested in assisting ILS in establishing criteria and procedures to guide courts when determining eligibility for mandated legal representation in criminal and family court proceedings. The first of these hearings will be in Syracuse, New York on July 9.
For more information, and instructions for providing written or oral testimony, go to: https://www.ils.ny.gov/files/Eligibility%20Public%20Hearings%20Notice.pdf. Please feel free to contact me (or any member of the ILS staff) if you have questions about the hearings.
Take good care,
Angela Olivia Burton, Esq.
Director of Quality Enhancement, Parent Representation
New York State Office of Indigent Legal Services
80 South Swan Street, 29th Floor
Albany, New York 12210
Desk: 518-474-4859
Cell: 518-491-0094
Fax: 518-474-0505
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