TBA Law Blog


Posted by: Josie Beets on Dec 2, 2014

Court-appointed lawyers in Tennessee have not seen a pay raise in 20 years, the Commercial Appeal reports, and some earn less than half as much per hour to try a murder case as expert witnesses earn to testify. The piece quotes defense attorney Michael Working, who says current rate caps and a confusing and bureaucratic process for collecting payment pose a direct threat to equal access to justice for all defendants. The article also cites a recent TBA survey that showed  many experienced attorneys have stopped taking court-appointed cases because the fees are too low and the paperwork is too burdensome.