Defense Lawyers Look to Courts for Relief After Payment Freeze

Federal judges have begun fielding requests from criminal defense lawyers to be taken off cases, or even have charges thrown out, after the judiciary ran out of money to pay certain attorneys who represent low-income defendants.

Marla Zink, a criminal defense lawyer based in Seattle, asked federal courts this month for permission to withdraw from two different pending cases, citing the suspension in payments to lawyers on what’s known as the Criminal Justice Act panel.

These panel attorneys, who are mostly solo practitioners or at small firms, are appointed by the court to help federal public defenders represent criminal defendants ...