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PublishedMarch 24, 2023
Maine courts may take until 2028 to touch backlog of cases
Chief Justice Valerie Stanfill says the judicial branch is "frail" following her State of the Judiciary speech.
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PublishedMarch 1, 2023
Maine attorneys coming back to court-appointed rosters
The Maine Legislature's recent hike in pay for court-appointed private criminal defense attorneys is aimed at combating a chronic backlog of cases clogging up the state's courts.
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PublishedFebruary 27, 2023
Increased pay has bolstered ranks of attorneys representing indigent clients
But the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services says that the pay increase needs to be extended beyond this summer and that more needs to be done to stabilize the program and meet the state’s constitutional obligations.
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PublishedJanuary 31, 2023
Former leader of Maine public defenders says job not what he expected
Seth Levy resigned after less than a month but said he is still optimistic about the role of a public defender's office in Maine.
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PublishedJanuary 25, 2023
Maine’s new lead public defender resigns
The Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services called an emergency meeting Wednesday to allow its executive director to temporarily fill the role left by Seth Levy.
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PublishedJanuary 17, 2023
New funding for Maine’s legal defense system for the poor not enough to solve problem, commission says
Gov. Janet Mills' plan to increase funding for the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services by $17 million pales in comparison to the agency's $62 million request.
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PublishedNovember 27, 2022
System to help poor defendants is worsening in rural Maine
Attorneys staffing the struggling indigent defense program say the solutions they're seeing can't keep up with the systemic problems.
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PublishedOctober 11, 2022
Gov. Mills hesitant to pursue emergency funds for indigent legal services, emails show
Gov. Janet Mills asks the agency in charge of providing legal defense to low-income Mainers if it has done enough to recruit attorneys to address an ongoing shortage.
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PublishedSeptember 28, 2022
Indigent defender commission sends emergency funding request to governor, lawmakers
The Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services is asking for $13.3 million before next year to increase the hourly rate for attorneys. But lawmakers would have to come together for an unlikely special session to approve the spending.
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PublishedSeptember 21, 2022
Citing emergency, Maine’s legal service for the poor requests $13.3 million
Faced with a dwindling roster of attorneys, the Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services wants to increase the hourly rate from $80 to $150 for lawyers who agree to represent low-income Mainers.
Maine Commission on Indigent Legal Services
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