Request for Proposals to Conduct a Michigan Appellate Public Defense Caseload Standards Study

Submissions due May 31, 2021
The State Appellate Defender Office (SADO) is requesting proposals from qualified vendors to assist SADO in determining appropriate workload standards for providers of indigent legal representation in criminal appeals in the state of Michigan.

 SADO seeks to procure the services of a vendor to conduct a study which can be used as a basis for stipulating numerical caseload/workload standards for adult criminal appeals in Michigan courts. The selected vendor will work in consultation with SADO at all stages of the study, including the conduct of the study itself. The study must result in the production of recommended caseload standards for indigent defense providers that accounts for (a) guilty plea and trial appeals, (b) the different facets of appellate work including both trial court and appellate court representation, and (c) variation in delivery models between the SADO public defender office and the Michigan Appellate Assigned Counsel System (MAACS).

 SADO requests proposals from qualified vendors which may include, but are not limited to, private sector firms, not-for-profit organizations, and public or private institutions such as universities or colleges with expertise in conducting research similar to research described in Sections 4 and 5 of this RFP. (See link below)

This RFP also outlines the terms and conditions, and all applicable information required for submission of a proposal. Proposers should pay strict attention to the proposal submission deadline to prevent disqualification. To ensure compliance with these requirements and to prevent possible disqualification, Proposers should follow the format and instructions contained in this document.

Find the RFP here.