Defender Services Program
The Defender Services Program, established pursuant to the Criminal Justice Act (CJA), 18 U.S.C. § 3006A, upholds the Sixth Amendment Right to Counsel in the federal courts by providing representation for persons unable to afford counsel in federal criminal proceedings.
The Defender Services Program provides high-quality representation consistent with the best practices of the legal profession through a hybrid system of 83 federal defender organizations (FDOs) and approximately 13,000 Criminal Justice Act panel attorneys paid through the Defender Services appropriation. Together, federal defenders and CJA panel attorneys represent the vast majority of persons prosecuted for federal criminal offenses. There are two types of FDOs: (1) federal public defender organizations (FPDOs), which consist of federal employees who are part of the judiciary, and (2) community defender organizations (CDOs), which are private, state-chartered, non-profit corporations funded by annual federal grants from the judiciary.
Respected as the “gold standard” in public defense, the Defender Services Program provides representation for the full range of federal criminal offenses. The program’s reputation is exemplified by a federal judge’s observation that “[F]ederal public defenders... typically provide the highest quality representation... significantly higher than that provided by privately retained counsel... and even prosecutors.” United States v. Brown, 785 F.3d 1337,1348 n.5 (9th Cir. 2015).
Defender Services Office (DSO)
The mission of the Defender Services Office (DSO), located within the Administrative Office of the U.S. Courts, is to uphold the right to counsel guaranteed by the Sixth Amendment, the Criminal Justice Act (CJA), 18 U.S.C. § 3006A, and other congressional mandates. DSO supports counsel appointed to represent individuals who are unable to afford a lawyer or pay for other critical defense services. Counsel appointed under the CJA are from either a panel of private attorneys designated by the court, or an FDO. DSO consists of a dedicated staff of nearly 80 full-time employees and is organized into four divisions and an administrative operations staff. Elizabeth Brown Luck is the DSO Chief and Pamela Hamrin serves as Deputy Chief.
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Fellowship program information
Non-Capital Fellowship Program - Designed for graduating law students and attorneys early in their careers, the non-capital program will place 12 fellows in different FDO host offices around the country for two-year terms during which fellows will gain federal criminal defense training and experience in providing representation in non-capital CJA cases. Each class will have opportunities for joint training, mentorship, and other group activities. Non-capital fellows are employees of federal defender organizations, which are either community defender organizations (CDOs) or federal public defender organizations (FPDOs) and will receive a salary and benefits package comparable to other post graduate, public interest legal training programs. The salary range for non-capital fellows will be the Judiciary Salary Plan (JSP) Grade 11 - 13, depending on experience, which is comparable to the federal General Schedule (GS) pay scale. The salary will also reflect locality adjustments.
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Capital Fellowship Program - The capital program will place two fellows-attorneys with three to five years of criminal practice experience-in FDO host offices for a two-year term during which they will receive intensive training in federal capital trial practice. Capital fellows are employees of federal defender organizations, which are either community defender organizations (CDOs) or federal public defender organizations (FPDOs), and will receive a salary and benefits package comparable to other post-graduate, public interest legal training programs. The salary range for non-capital fellows will be the Judiciary Salary Plan (JSP) 12 - 14, depending on experience, which is comparable to the federal General Schedule (GS) pay scale. The salary will also reflect locality adjustments.
Meet our 2024-2026 Non-Capital Fellows
