Mich. Admin. Ord. Administrative Order No. 2015-9
In Administrative Order No. 2014-18, the Court ordered the merger of the State Appellate Defender Office (SADO) and the Michigan Appellate Assigned Counsel System (MAACS), and further ordered the Appellate Defender Commission "to review operations of the MAACS and submit a proposed administrative order that reflects the consolidation of the two offices and incorporates proposed updates or revisions that the commission recommends."
On order of the Court, and upon the request of the Appellate Defender Commission, MAACS is authorized to implement a one-year pilot project to assess the feasibility, costs, and benefits associated with structural reforms currently under consideration for permanent statewide implementation. These reforms would consolidate the individual "local lists" of roster attorneys, which currently exist in all 57 circuit courts, into a smaller number of regional lists to be maintained and administered by MAACS. The pilot will assess the extent to which this consolidation results in greater speed and efficiency in the assignment process, by reducing the number of lists to maintain and allowing MAACS to assume the responsibility of prescreening counsel, preparing appointment orders, and sending notification of appointments to defendants and their attorneys.
The reforms under consideration will depend upon the standardization of appellate assigned counsel policies among the circuit courts, most notably including the voluntary adoption of a standard attorney fee and expense policy. The pilot will assess the extent to which uniformity in attorney fee policies allows more meaningful data analysis related to attorney performance and efficiency, as well as the potential financial impact of these reforms on the circuit courts and their funding units. The pilot will also assess the extent to which standardization of attorney fees affects MAACS's attorney recruitment and retention efforts.
Mich. Admin. Ord. Administrative Order No. 2015-9