OPD’s Appellate and Post-Conviction Program fulfills the agency’s statutory obligation of providing effective and efficient representation by contracting with numerous law firms and attorneys with a range of experience and practice interests.
OPD recognizes the importance of appellate experience as well as the value of creating opportunities for attorneys with trial experience and those dedicated to public service to enter appellate practice.
For attorneys new to appellate practice, OPD requires them to collaborate and work with our appellate and post-conviction resource attorneys on their first assignments. In addition to providing training, coaching, and peer support to our appellate attorneys, OPD provides such benefits as:
- Experience-based compensation paid monthly to appellate attorneys
- Choice of case assignment types (criminal, civil commitment, dependency, guardianship, etc.)
- Choice of number of credits to be assigned
- Reimbursement for overhead costs incurred for assignments (e.g. commercial office space, support staff, administrative costs)
- Contract paralegal support
- Westlaw subscription
- Access to the Judicial Information System (JIS)
- Reimbursement for accessing county judicial systems
- Travel assistance and reimbursement including mileage, flights, and accommodation
- No-cost continuing legal education and professional development opportunities
If you are interested in contracting with OPD as an appellate attorney or have questions about contracting with us, please feel free to email Sean Devlin at sean.devlin@opd.wa.gov