NYS Office of Indigent Legal Services

The purpose of the Office of Indigent Legal Services ("Office") is “to monitor, study and make efforts to improve the quality of services provided pursuant to article eighteen-B of the county law.”  Executive Law Article 30, Section 832(1). The Office does not provide legal assistance or lawyer referrals to individuals. Rather, it operates under the direction and pursuant to policies established by the Board to assist county governments and indigent legal services providers in the exercise of their responsibility under County Law Article 18-B to provide the effective assistance of counsel to those persons who are legally entitled to counsel, but cannot afford to hire an attorney.

At its first meeting following the hiring of a Director for the Office, on March 10, 2011, the Board made a very important decision to approve the distribution of $4.4 million in funds to the counties and New York City for the purpose of improving the quality of representation. (Distribution #1). The motivation for this non-competitive distribution of funds was to assure every county that the amount of its state funding would not decrease, at a time when the counties were being asked to improve the quality of their representation.

In 2003, State Finance Law Section 98-b created the Indigent Legal Services Fund, under the joint custody of the Office of State Comptroller and the Commissioner of Tax and Finance. Section 98-b also specified that the primary purpose of the Fund is to assist counties to provide legal representation for persons unable to afford it.

Competitive grants differ from statutory distributions and discretionary distributions in that they are designed to encourage indigent legal services providers to develop solutions to specifically designated needs or shortcomings in the statewide provision of indigent legal services. Specifically, Executive Law sections 832 (3)(a) and 833 (7)(c) authorize the Office and Board to “target grants in support of innovative and cost effective solutions that enhance the provision of quality indigent legal services” and to incentivize counties through the use of “incentive grants.”

All Trial Level Representation

NYS Executive Law section 832(3)(d) mandates the Office of Indigent Legal Services "to establish standards and criteria for the provision of [indigent defense] in cases involving a conflict of interest, and to assist counties to develop plans consistent with such standards and criteria."

Through its research and data gathering activities, ILS strives to become a repository for all known and available information on indigent legal services providers around the state. The Office gathers data through a variety of strategies including the collation of data from state agencies, research into available data from county sources, and direct contacts with indigent legal services providers themselves.

Director

Executive Law section 832 (2010) created the Office of Indigent Legal Services and specified its duties. A Director was to be nominated by the newly-appointed ILS Board, and the nomination sent to the Governor for approval or disapproval. Once approved, the Director "shall appoint employees and perform such other functions as are appropriate to ensure the efficient operation of the office within the amounts available therefor by appropriation."

Executive Law 833 creates the 9-member Indigent Legal Services Board, and specifies the Board's composition and duties. Board members must be appointed by the governor.