General Claims Information
The primary source of information on panel attorney compensation claims is the Statewide Claims Manual first published in 2019. In addition, panel attorneys must adhere to the Judicial Council of California (JCC) and Appellate Indigent Defense Oversight Advisory Committee (AIDOAC) compensation policies on travel, habeas corpus petitions, use of associate counsel, and retaining receipts (see links at the bottom of this page). The guidance contained in the Statewide Claims Manual and in the JCC and AIDOAC policies fully applies to First District claims.
For certain topics, however, additional information is provided for Unique First District Claims Policies and Procedures. Be sure to consult those unique policies regarding: use of translators, interpreters, experts and investigators.
Panel attorneys electronically transmit their compensation claims to FDAP through eClaims. FDAP then reviews the claim and makes recommendations for the amount of hours and expenses approved. Claims are also subject to random audit by AIDOAC, which may alter the amount recommended. In unusual cases, the Court of Appeal itself may make the final decision as to compensation.
Compensation claims for work completed on a case after the California Supreme Court has granted review are not processed by FDAP and must be submitted directly to that Court. This applies both to merits grants and grant-and-hold cases. The appellate projects do not review Supreme Court claims. Panel attorneys may use the eClaims system to create a PDF claim to email to the Supreme Court for processing. The attorney enters their time/expenses in eClaims, prints it to PDF, and emails it to the Supreme Court. Do not submit the claim to FDAP through eClaims; eClaims is merely simply being used as a platform to generate a PDF.
Claims are evaluated under the compensation guidelines. The hourly rate for panel attorneys varies depending upon the type of case.
Panel attorneys bear the obligation to keep track of hours. The guidelines are neither a floor nor a ceiling on panel attorney compensation in a given case. Attorneys should only claim the amount of time actually spent on a given task. If an attorney claims above the guidelines amount and that amount is justified, full compensation may be awarded, but an explanation for hours over guidelines is needed.
A panel attorney anticipating unusual expenditures for travel or other expenses, should contact the consulting FDAP staff attorney about seeking advance approval from FDAP and/or the Court of Appeal. For example, although the guidelines permit reimbursement for expert witness expenses, it is a rare case in which such an expenditure is needed. Before hiring either an expert witness or an investigator, the panel attorney must discuss the matter with the consulting FDAP attorney and obtain pre-approval.
Panel Attorney Guidelines and Rates
Guidelines for Panel Attorney Compensation
Attorney Time
| Attorney Time Categories | Attorney Time Categories | Guideline | |
|---|---|---|---|
| 02 | 2. Record Review | 1.0 hour for each 50 pages of record | |
| 03 | 3. Extensions of Time | 0.5 hours | |
| 04 | 4. Motions to Augment | 1.5 hours | |
| 05 | 5. Other Motions | reasonable time | |
| 06 | 6. First Brief (Usually AOB) | Statement of Case and Facts | 1/2 of time to review record, up to 10.0 hours |
| 07 | Low Simple | < 4 hours | |
| 08 | Simple | 4 hours | |
| 09 | Simple to Average | > 4 to < 8 hours | |
| 11 | Average to Complex | > 8 to < 13.5 hours | |
| 12 | Complex | 13.5 hours | |
| 13 | 7. Unbriefed Issues | Low Simple | < 0.5 hours |
| 14 | Simple | 0.5 hours | |
| 15 | Simple to Average | > 0.5 to < 2.5 hours | |
| 16 | Average | 2.5 hours | |
| 17 | Average to Complex | > 2.5 to < 5.0 hours | |
| 18 | Complex | 5.0 hours | |
| 19 | 8. Reply Brief | 1/3 of hours awarded for AOB | |
| 20 | 9. Supplemental Brief | same as first brief guidelines | |
| 21 | 10. Review of Opposing Brief | After substantive brief | 2.5 hours |
| 22 | 10. Review of Opposing Brief | After no-issue brief | 0 hours |
| 23 | 11. Habeas Corpus Petition | 12.0 hours | |
| 24 | 12. Rehearing Petition | 6.0 hours | |
| 25 | 13. Petition for Review | 10.0 hours | |
| 26 | 14. Petition: Other | reasonable time | |
| 27 | 15. Petition: Read Response | reasonable time | |
| 28 | 16. Petition: Reply to Response | 1/3 of hours awarded for petition | |
| 29 | 17. Oral Argument; | 7.5 hours | |
| 30 | 18. Travel | Reasonable time | |
| 31 | 19. Review Opinion | After substantive brief | 1.5 hours |
| 32 | 19. Review Opinion | After no-issue brief | 0.2 hours |
| 33 | 20. Review Superior Court File | 2.0 hours | |
| 34 | 21. Consult with appellate project | on assisted case | 4.0 hours |
| 35 | 21. Consult with appellate project | on independent case | 2.0 hours |
| 36 | 22. Administrative Tasks | 1.0 hours | |
| 37 | 23. Other Communications | reasonable time | |
| 38 | 24. Other Services | reasonable time | |
| 01 | 1. Communication with appellant and/or trial counsel | 3.5 hours if appointment order was filed prior to 3/1/2025; 5.0 hours if appointment was on or after 3/1/2025 | |
| 10 | Average | 8.0 hours |
Attorney Expenses
| Expenses Categories | Guidelines |
|---|---|
| 2. Brief Binding | actual cost, if reasonable and necessary; explanation required; with electronic filing, need for brief binding is very rare |
| 3. Postage/Delivery | actual cost, if reasonable; explain if over $50 |
| 4. Telephone | actual cost; if reasonable |
| 6. Court of Appeal Electronic Filing and Service Fees | actual cost |
| 7. Paralegal/Law Clerk | $25 per hour |
| 8. Translator/Interpreter | actual cost, up to local prevailing rate |
| 1. Photocopying | - actual cost, up to $0.25 per page (if appointment order filed on or after March 1, 2025) - actual cost, up to $0.10 per page (if appointment order filed prior to March 1, 2025) (This guideline does not apply to printing of an electronic record for the client. See Miscellaneous Expenses - Line 9.) |
| 5. Travel | Actual necessary expenditures, with the limitations described in the Judicial Council’s Travel Guidelines for Court-Appointed Counsel in the Courts of Appeal, appended to the Statewide Claims Manual. |
| 9. Miscellaneous | - reasonable cost - printing of the electronic file and/or transcripts received from the court for the client is compensable at actual cost, if reasonable, when the record is requested by the client and the client is unable to receive an electronic file. |
Hourly Rates for Panel Attorney Compensation
| Type of case | 7/1/2025 - present | 7/1/22 – 6/30/25 | 7/1/16 – 6/30/22 | 7/1/07-6/30/16 | 7/1/06 – 6/30/07 | 10/1/05 – 6/30/06 | 10/1/98 – 9/30/05 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
Upper Tier Independent Cases:
| $140/hour | $130 | 115 | 105 | 100 | 90 | 85 |
| All other independent cases | $130/hour | $120 | 105 | 95 | 90 | 80 | 75 |
| All assisted cases | $120/hour | $110 | 95 | 85 | 80 | 70 | 65 |
Direct Deposit Information
For information about direct deposit and for a link to the direct deposit form, visit the Judicial Council’s Court-Appointed Counsel Program webpage.
First District Policies on Expert, Investigator and Translator Expenses
Investigators/Experts
FDAP is authorized to approve requests for funds up to $1,700 for investigator and/or expert services. Requests for more than $1,700, must be submitted to the Court of Appeal, as described below. The caps on FDAP approval increase to $1,900 on July 1, 2026, and $2,100 on July 1, 2027.
The former caps on hourly rates ($65 for investigators and $125 for experts) have been eliminated and FDAP will review the proposed hourly rates for reasonableness.
Translators and Interpreters
Translation is only for correspondence and, when pre-approved by FDAP, for live client meetings. There is no reimbursement for translating briefs, petitions and other legal documents.
FDAP is authorized to approve up to $1,700 for translator services. Requests for more than $1,700 must be submitted to the Court of Appeal, as described below. The caps on FDAP approval increase to $1,900 on July 1, 2026, and $2,100 on July 1, 2027.
The former cap on the hourly rates ($30) has been eliminated and FDAP will review the proposed hourly or per-page rates for reasonableness.
Approval Process
More than $1,700 Needed: If counsel reasonably believes from the outset that more than $1,700 is needed, counsel should make the request directly to the Court of Appeal in the form of an ex parte application (i.e. a pleading, not a letter).
When counsel submits the request to the Court of Appeal, counsel should: (a) entitle it: “Ex Parte Application for [Investigator/Expert/Translator] Funds” and (b) address it to the Presiding Justice of the Court of Appeal Division. However, rather than submit the application to the Court of Appeal through TrueFiling, counsel should email it to FDAP, which will forward the request to the Managing Attorney at the Court of Appeal. (As an ex parte application, it will not be served on the opposing party.) The Managing Attorney will submit the application to the Presiding Justice, who will issue an order either granting, granting in part, or denying authorization to incur the requested expenses.
Less than $1,700 Needed – Investigators and Experts: If counsel reasonably believes that they will only need $1,700 or less to complete the services for the case, counsel should address a request to FDAP through the consulting staff attorney.
Less than $1,700 Needed – Translators: If counsel reasonably believes that they will only need $1,700 or less to complete the translation services for the case, counsel can incur those expenses without prior FDAP approval. FDAP will consider the reasonableness of the amounts incurred and the translator’s hourly rate when reviewing the panel attorney’s compensation claim.
Contact the consulting FDAP staff attorney for approval for live interpreter services, i.e. for a meeting with the client.
Counsel should consider contacting the consulting staff attorney before incurring expenses if they are uncertain regarding what rates are reasonable, or the hourly or per-page rate seems high, or the total amounts incurred become increasingly high, even if not surpassing $1,700.
Uncertainty Regarding Whether More than $1,700 Will be Needed: For expert and investigator services in particular, the more difficult situation is where counsel reasonably believes that an initial expenditure of $1,700 or less would reach a fairly definitive point at which counsel would know either: (a) the claim was not viable; or (b) the claim appears viable and there are now clear follow-up steps that will be needed which will bring the total cost above $1,700. In that situation, it is proper to bring the initial request to FDAP, and then subsequently go to the Court of Appeal for the further funds if the initial showing warrants it. However, the Court of Appeal does not want a situation where counsel knows they will inevitably be asking for more money but goes to FDAP first.
There are no precise rules, but where counsel reasonably believes from the outset that they likely will need more than $1,700 counsel should make the initial request directly to the Court of Appeal.
Finding a Translator: The Judicial Council’s Master List of Interpreters includes more than a thousand certified interpreters and registered interpreters (counsel can use either kind), and their contact information. The list covers more than a dozen certified languages and many more registered languages.
If a panel attorney has a particularly good experience with a translator, please contact FDAP and let us know. We keep a small in-house list.