Several PAC attorneys have reached out to express concern about their appointment status being marked as “Retained” in Portal.
“Retained” is the default attorney appointment status in eCourts and it is fairly common to see court-appointed attorneys or assistant public defenders marked as retained in Portal. If erroneous, this detail can only be corrected by the clerk of court.
However, private attorneys who are assigned to indigent clients by a public defender’s office or judge, should know that being marked “retained” in Portal will not affect the payment of your fee app. As always, please check the “appointed” box on your AOC-CR-225 (fee app).
We encourage you to keep accurate records of your appointments in case questions arise in the future from clients or the state bar.