Louisiana Administrative Code
Title 22 - CORRECTIONS, CRIMINAL JUSTICE AND LAW ENFORCEMENT
Part XV - Public Defender Board
Chapter 21 - Performance Standards for Attorneys Representing Juveniles in Life without Parole Cases
Section XV-2139 - Direct Appeal

1. Appellate counsel should comply with these performance standards, except where clearly inapplicable to the representation of the client during the period of direct appeal, including the obligations to:

2. Appellate counsel should be familiar with all state and federal appellate and post-conviction options available to the client, and should consider how any tactical decision might affect later options.

3. Appellate counsel should monitor and remain informed of legal developments that may be relevant to the persuasive presentation of claims on direct appeal and in any application for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court as well as the preservation of claims for subsequent review in federal habeas corpus proceedings and international legal fora.

4. When identifying potential conflicts, appellate counsel should have particular regard to areas of potential conflict that may arise at this stage of proceedings, including:

5. Counsel should explain to the client counsels role, how counsel was appointed to the case, and the meaning and goals of the appeal, and counsel should encourage the client to participate in the appellate process.

6. Counsel shall consult with the client on the matters to be raised on appeal and give genuine consideration to any issue the client wishes to raise on appeal. What claims to raise on appeal, and how to raise them, are generally matters entrusted to the discretion of counsel. When counsel decides not to argue all of the issues that his or her client desires to be argued, counsel should inform the client of that decision, of the reasons for the decision, and of his or her right to file a pro se brief.

7. Appellate counsel should obtain and review a complete record of all proceedings relevant to the case including the appellate record, the district court file, any file in the court of appeal or supreme court, and the files in any other related or prior proceedings in the cause.

8. Appellate counsel should obtain and review all prior counsels file(s). Appellate counsel should retain and preserve prior counsels files as far as possible in the condition in which they were received until transmitted to successor counsel.

9. Appellate counsel should ensure that the record on appeal is complete. If any item is necessary to appellate review but is not included in the record, it is appellate counsels responsibility to file a motion to supplement the record and to seek to have the briefing schedule stayed pending completion of the record.

10. Appellate counsel should interview the client and previous defense team members about the case, including any relevant matters that do not appear in the record. Appellate counsel should consider whether any potential off-record matters may have an impact on how the appeal is pursued, and what kind of an investigation of the matter is warranted.

11. Appellate counsel should seek to investigate and litigate all issues, whether or not previously presented, that are arguably meritorious under the standards applicable to high quality juvenile life without parole representation, including challenges to any overly restrictive procedural rules and any good faith argument for the extension, modification or reversal of existing law. If an error warranting relief has not yet been presented, Counsel should present it and request error patent review.

12. Counsel should make every professionally appropriate effort to present issues in a manner that will preserve them for subsequent review. Claims raised should include federal constitutional claims which, in the event that relief is denied in the state appellate courts, could form the basis for a successful petition for writ of certiorari to the Supreme Court or for a writ of habeas corpus in the federal district court. Counsel should present all claims in a manner that will meet the exhaustion requirements applicable in federal habeas corpus proceedings. Where pending claims in another case may be resolved in a manner that would benefit the client, counsel should ensure that the relevant issues are preserved and presented for review in the clients case and, where appropriate, counsel should seek to keep the clients direct appeal open pending the determination of the other case.

13. Petitions and briefs shall conform to all rules of court and shall have a professional appearance, shall advance argument and cite legal authority in support of each contention and shall conform to Blue Book rules of citation. Regardless of the existence of local authority, federal authority should also be relied upon to present and preserve for later review any federal constitutional claims, particularly any applicable decision of the United States Supreme Court.

14. Counsel should be scrupulously accurate in referring to the record and the authorities upon which counsel relies in the briefing and oral argument. All arguments on assignments of error should include references by page number, or by any more precise method of location, to the place(s) in the transcript which contains the alleged error.

15. Counsel should not intentionally refer to or argue on the basis of facts outside the record on appeal, unless such facts are matters of common public knowledge based on ordinary human experience or matters of which the court may take judicial notice. If appropriate, counsel should move for the remand of the matter and conduct such evidentiary hearings as may be required to create or supplement a record for review of any claim of error or argument for excessiveness that is not adequately supported by the record.

16. Where counsel is considering seeking a remand for further hearing, counsel should undertake a full factual investigation of the issue for which the remand would be sought so that the decision as to whether to seek remand may be made in light of the evidence that might be adduced at such a hearing. Where counsel does seek remand for further hearing, counsel should ensure that adequate investigation and preparation has been undertaken to allow counsel to promptly litigate the matter if the case is remanded for further hearing.

17. The identification and selection of issues is the responsibility of lead counsel. Lead counsel shall adopt procedures for providing an "issues meeting" between the attorneys handling the case and other relevantly qualified attorneys, including at least one qualified as lead appellate counsel, at which the issues raised in the case and the defense theory on appeal can be discussed. The issues meeting will ordinarily be conducted in the course of a case review meeting under these standards but where this is not possible, the issues meeting should be conducted independently of the case review.

18. Counsel should complete a full review of the records of relevant proceedings and trial counsels files prior to completing a draft of the brief. Lead counsel shall adopt a procedure for screening the brief, which should include a careful review of the brief by an attorney not involved in drafting the pleading. The reviewing attorney should be qualified as lead appellate counsel.

19. The review of the records and files should be completed a sufficient time before the filing deadline to allow for the issues meeting, the drafting of the brief, the review of the brief and the finalization of the brief. If appellate counsel is unable to prepare the brief within the existing briefing schedule in a manner consistent with these standards and with high quality appellate representation, it is counsels responsibility to file a motion to extend the briefing schedule.

20. Counsel shall be diligent in expediting the timely submission of the appeal and shall take all steps necessary to reduce delays and time necessary for the processing of appeals which adversely affect the client.

21. Where counsel is unable to provide high quality representation in appellate proceedings in a particular case and the deficiency cannot be remedied then counsel must bring the matter to the attention of the court and seek the relief appropriate to protect the interests of the client. Counsel may be unable to provide high quality representation due to a range of factors: lack of resources, insufficient time, excessive workload, poor health or other personal considerations, inadequate skill or experience etc.

22. Following the filing of appellees brief and before filing a reply brief, a second case review meeting shall be conducted to discuss the defense theory on appeal in light of the issues raised in the original brief, Appellees brief and the issues to be addressed in reply and at oral argument.

23. Counsel should, no less than two weeks prior to oral argument, where possible, file a reply brief rebutting legal and factual arguments made by the state. The reply brief should not simply repeat the contents of the original brief but should respond directly to the contentions of the state and any issues arising from the states brief. Where appropriate, counsel should file a supplemental brief on the merits, seeking leave to do so if the case has already been submitted.

24. Counsel should undertake a detailed and intensive investigation of the matters relevant to the sentence review memorandum. Counsel shall not rely upon the contents of the states sentence review memorandum without confirming the accuracy of that memorandum. The investigation should be commenced as soon as practicable after counsel is assigned to the case. Where additional favorable information is developed, counsel should seek a remand of the matter for the development of facts relating to whether the sentence is excessive.

25. Counsel shall promptly inform the client of the date, time and place scheduled for oral argument of the appeal as soon as counsel receives notice thereof from the appellate court. Counsel shall not waive oral argument.

26. To prepare for oral argument, counsel should review the record and the briefs of the parties, and should update legal research. If binding dispositive or contrary authority has been published since the filing of the brief, counsel shall disclose the information to the court. Counsel should be prepared to answer questions propounded by the court. In particular, counsel should be prepared to address whether and where the questions presented were preserved in the record, the applicable standards of review and the prejudice associated with the errors alleged.

27. If pertinent and significant authorities come to counsels attention following oral argument, counsel should bring the authorities to the attention to the court by letter or, where appropriate, should seek leave to file a supplemental brief.

28. Counsel shall promptly inform the client of any decision of the appellate court in the client's case and shall promptly transmit to the client a copy of the decision. Counsel should accurately inform the client of the courses of action which may be pursued as a result of the decision. If the case has been returned to a lower court on remand, counsel should continue in his or her representation (unless and until other counsel has been assigned and formally enrolled) providing any necessary briefing to the court to continue to advocate for the client.

29. Counsel shall timely prepare and file a motion for rehearing, raising all arguments for which a meritorious motion for rehearing can be advanced. Counsel should have particular regard to any changes or developments in the law since the case had been submitted and any errors of fact or law appearing in the decision that may be corrected by reference to the record.

30. The duties of the counsel representing the client on direct appeal ordinarily include filing a petition for certiorari in the Supreme Court of the United States. In developing, drafting and filing a petition for certiorari, appellate counsel should consult with counsel with particular expertise and experience in litigating applications for certiorari before the United States Supreme Court.

31. In preparing and filing a petition for certiorari, counsel should consider the benefit to the client of the support of amici and seek appropriate support where it is in the clients interests.

32. In the event that the clients appeal to the Louisiana Supreme Court and application for certiorari to the United States Supreme Court are unsuccessful, appellate counsel shall advise the client of: his or her right to seek state post-conviction relief and federal habeas corpus relief; the one-year statute of limitations for the filing of a petition for a writ of habeas corpus in federal district court; the procedure and effect of filing of a petition for post-conviction relief in the state trial court to raise new claims and to exhaust any federal constitutional issues for federal habeas review.

33. Appellate counsel shall, with the clients consent, continue to represent the client for the limited purpose of preserving the clients interests in his state post-conviction, federal habeas corpus and clemency proceedings. Counsel shall carefully explain the limited scope of this representation to the client and provide advice of this limited scope in writing when obtaining the clients consent.

34. Counsel should be aware of the statute of limitations for filing a petition for writ of habeas corpus in federal court, and should file pleadings in state court so as to allow adequate time for preparation and filing of such a petition if state post-conviction relief is denied.

35. When counsels representation terminates, counsel shall cooperate with the client and any succeeding counsel in the transmission of the record, transcripts, file, and other information pertinent to post-conviction proceedings. Counsel should notify the client when the case assignment is concluded.