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-2119 - Relations with Client

Current through Register Vol. 50, No. 6, June 20, 2024
A. Counsel at
				all stages of the case should make every appropriate effort to establish a
				relationship of trust and confidence with the client, and should maintain close
				contact with the client. Representation of a child facing a sentence of life
				without parole in adult court should proceed in a trauma-informed and
				developmentally and age-appropriate manner with a strong emphasis on the
				relationship between the defense team and the client.
B. Counsel should make every appropriate
				effort to overcome barriers to communication and trust, including those arising
				from the child's special circumstances, such as age and its attendant
				circumstances, trauma, incompetence, mental or physical disability/illness,
				language barriers, cultural differences, circumstances of incarceration, prior
				experiences in the criminal justice system and prior experiences of legal
				representation. Where barriers to communication or trust with counsel cannot be
				adequately overcome to allow for high quality representation of the client,
				such further steps as are necessary should be taken. In an appropriate case,
				this may include seeking the assignment of additional counsel or other team
				members or the substitution of counsel.
C. Lead counsel should ensure that the
				defense team as a whole is able to establish and maintain a relationship of
				trust and confidence with the client. All members of the team should be trained
				on interviewing and communicating with child clients in a trauma-informed and
				developmentally and age-appropriate manner. Where a particular team member is
				unable to overcome barriers to communication or trust, lead counsel should take
				all reasonable steps to remedy the problem. Where the relationship cannot be
				sufficiently improved, lead counsel should strongly consider removing or
				replacing the team member.
D.
				Understanding that a relationship of trust and confidence with the client is
				essential to the provision of effective representation, the defense team must
				take all reasonable steps to ensure that both the representation provided and
				the manner in which that representation is provided operate to develop and
				preserve such a relationship.
E.
				Understanding that regular contact and meaningful communication are essential
				to the provision of effective representation of a child facing a possible
				sentence of life without parole, the defense team should take all reasonable
				steps to ensure that the client is able to communicate regularly with the
				defense team members in confidential circumstances and should ensure that the
				client is visited by defense team members frequently, particularly where the
				client is in custody. Counsel may rely upon other members of the defense team
				to provide some of the required contact with the client but visits by other
				team members cannot substitute for counsels own direct contact with the client.
				Given lead counsels particular responsibilities, visits by other counsel in the
				case cannot substitute for lead counsels own direct contact with the
				client.
F. In a trial level case, a
				JLWOP client should be visited by a member of the defense team no less than
				once every week, though visits would be expected to be much more frequent where
				there is active investigation or litigation in the case or in the lead up to
				trial. In a trial level case a JLWOP client should be visited by an attorney
				member of the defense team no less than once every two weeks and by lead
				counsel no less than once every month, though visits by counsel would be
				expected to be much more frequent where there is active investigation or
				litigation in the case or in the lead up to, during and following
				trial.
G. In an appellate or
				post-conviction case, a JLWOP client may be visited less frequently but regular
				communication and actual visits remain critical to effective
				representation.
H. Counsel at all
				stages of the case need to monitor the clients physical, mental and emotional
				condition and consider any potential legal consequences or adverse impact upon
				the adequate representation of the client. Counsel should monitor the clients
				physical, emotional and mental condition throughout the representation both
				personally, through the observations of other team members and experts and
				through review of relevant records. If counsel observes changes in the clients
				appearance or demeanor, counsel should promptly conduct an investigation of any
				circumstances contributing to this change and take all reasonable steps to
				advance the best interests of the client. Recognizing the potential adverse
				consequences for the representation inherent in any substantial impairment of
				the clients physical, mental and emotional condition, counsel should take all
				reasonable steps to improve the clients physical, mental and emotional
				condition where possible.
I.
				Counsel at all stages of the case should engage in a continuing interactive
				dialogue with the client concerning all matters that might reasonably be
				expected to have a material impact on the case, such as:
1. the progress of and prospects for the
				investigation and what assistance the client might provide;
2. current or potential legal
				issues;
3. current or potential
				strategic and tactical decisions, including the waiver of any rights or
				privileges held by the client;
4.
				the development of a defense theory;
5. presentation of the defense
				case;
6. potential agreed-upon
				dispositions of the case, including any possible disposition currently
				acceptable to the prosecution;
7.
				litigation deadlines and the projected schedule of case-related events;
				and
8. relevant aspects of the
				clients relationship with correctional, parole, or other governmental agents
				(e.g., prison medical providers or state psychiatrists).