Part 1	**NEW Rules for Non-capital Criminal and Non-criminal Cases at the Trial Level- Effective January 1, 2026 Rules for Non-capital Criminal and Non-criminal Cases at the Trial Level – For cases appointed prior to January 1, 2026
Part 2	Rules for Capital Cases – Amended Oct. 1, 2026
Part 2 Appendix	Standards for Capital Cases
Part 3	Rules for Non-Capital Criminal and Non-Criminal Appeals
Part 4	Rules for Inmate Access to the Courts

Appointment Fee	Updated Procedures to Attorney Appointments
Docketing Instructions	Clerk Actions when a District Court Judge Orders a Civil Judgement for Attorney Fees
Statute of Limitation	Statute of Limitation on Judgments for Indigent Attorney Fees
Scope	Scope of Representation
Use of Foreign Language Interpreters (IDS)	Out of Court Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services for Indigent Defendants and Respondents

Attorney Performance Standards

Scope of Representation


For Attorneys	Capital, Appeals and Capital Post-Conviction	Attorney Fee and Expense Policies for Capital, Appeals and Capital Post-Conviction – Updated October 21, 2026
	Non-Capital	Attorney Fee and Expense Policies for Non-Capital and Non-Criminal Cases – Policies Updated October 1, 2026 Attorney Fee and Expense Policies for Non-Capital and Non-Criminal Cases – Policies for cases appointed prior to January 1, 2026
	Flat Fee Collection	Flat Fee Policies Flat Fee FAQ
	Session Court	How to Bill Session Court Fee Applications
	Deadline Waiver	Extensions and Waivers of Attorney Fee Applications – Updated July 10, 2026
For Experts	Capital and Post-Conviction	Scroll down to the section titled, “Policies for Experts and Investigators”
	Non-Capital	Scroll down to the section titled, “Policies for Experts and Investigators”

For Managed Assigned Counsel (MAC)
Managed Assigned Counsel Policies
Managed Assigned Counsel Billing Review Guidelines

Class 3 Misdemeanors
Appointment and Payment of Counsel for Class 3 Misdemeanors
Form AOC-CR-224 – Order of Assignment or Denial of Counsel

IDS Teleconference Policy
IDS Teleconference Policy and Resources

Language Services – IDS and NCAOC Policies
Foreign Language Interpreter-Translator Policy OLAS – Office of Language Access Services Homepage (Updated July 2024) – This webpage is on the staff intranet site (JUNO) and is accessible only to Judicial Branch state employees. Standards for Language Access Services – Updated July 24, 2024 Language Access Updates to Standards and Initiating Forms \| North Carolina Judicial Branch (nccourts.gov) – Memo describing two key updates from NCAOC’s Office of Language Access (OLAS) for standards and forms

Language Services – IDS and NCAOC Policies

Foreign Language Interpreter-Translator Policy
OLAS – Office of Language Access Services Homepage (Updated July 2024) – This webpage is on the staff intranet site (JUNO) and is accessible only to Judicial Branch state employees.
Standards for Language Access Services – Updated July 24, 2024
Language Access Updates to Standards and Initiating Forms | North Carolina Judicial Branch (nccourts.gov) – Memo describing two key updates from NCAOC’s Office of Language Access (OLAS) for standards and forms


Private Attorney Fee and Expense Policies	IDS Transcript Ordering Procedure – August 2024
	Policy on Out-of-Court Foreign Language Interpretation and Translation Services for Indigent Defendants and Respondents * Link to Submit a Request for Spoken Foreign Language Court Interpreter * Link to AOC Standards on Spoken Foreign Language Interpreters
	“R” Files – Appointment and Payment of Counsel in Post-Release Supervision and Parole Preliminary Revocation Hearings Before a Hearing Officer, and Post-Release Supervision and Parole Revocation Hearings and Criminal Contempt Proceedings Before the Post-Release Supervision and Parole Commission.
	Session Court – How to Bill Session Court Fee Applications
Fee App Deadline Extension and Waiver Applications	Extension and Waiver of Appointed Attorney Fee Application Deadline Policy – Updated July 2026
	IDS-018: Capital Case Deadline Extension Request Form – Updated July 2026
	IDS-019: IDS Deadline Waiver Request Form – Updated July 2026


For Defender Offices and IDS Staff	2026 State Bar Dues FAQ	January 2026
	Staff Notary Policy
	Defender Special Travel and Training Policy	February 2024
	Defender Book Ordering Policy	January 2026

Capital Expert Fee and Expense Policies
	Expert Fee and Expense Policies (Non-capital and Non-Criminal Cases at the Trial Level) – July 2023
	Expert Fee and Expense Policies (Potentially Capital Cases, Appeals and Capital Post-Conviction) – – August 2026
	FY07 Capital Trial Case Study: PAC and Expert Spending in Potentially Capital Cases at the Trial Level – December 2008
	Out-of-Court Interpretation and Translation for Indigent Defendants and Respondents – November 2023

Link to Parent Defense Webpage
Appointment/Non-Parent	Appointment of Non-Parent in A/N/D Proceedings
Payment of Witnesses	Payment of Witnesses
Guardians ad Litem in A/N/D and Termination of Parental Rights	Appointments of Guardians ad Litem in A/N/D and T/P/R Proceedings
Civil Paternity	Appointment of Counsel for Indigent Defendants in Civil Paternity Proceedings
Depositions in A/N/D Proceedings	Depositions in A/N/D Proceedings
No-Merit Briefs	No-Merit Briefs Policy No-Merit Briefs Checklist Adjudication/Disposition Appeal Checklist TPR Checklist Other Orders Checklist
Entitlement to Counsel	In A/N/D Proceedings After Permanent Plan
Entitlement to and Payment of GALs	Policy
Role of Trial Counsel Under Rule 3.1	Division of Responsibility between Trial and Appellate Counsel
Billing	Billing Guidelines

Link to Appellate Defender Website
Conditions for Payment	Conditions of Payment for Indigent Appellate Representation
Duty to Monitor	Appellate Counsel’s Duty to Monitor Appointment of Trial Counsel After Relief is Granted Upon Appeal
MAR Pending Appeal	Motions for Appropriate Relief Pending Appeal
SBM Appeals	Payment for Satellite Based Monitoring Appeals
Juvenile Privacy	Redaction of Juvenile Names in Appellate Briefs
Listservs	Subscription to the Appellate Listserv
Anders Briefs	Anders Briefs in Criminal and Delinquency Appeals
Appeals of Right to SCONC	Appeals of Right to the Supreme Court of North Carolina Based Upon a Dissent in the Court of Appeals
Training	Mandatory Appellate Training
En Banc	Motions for En Banc Hearing and Rehearing Under Rule 31.1 of the North Carolina Rules of Appellate Procedure
PDR	Petitions for Discretionary Review
Role of Trial Counsel Under Rule 3.1	Division of Responsibility between Trial and Appellate Counsel who are Proceeding Under Rule 3.1

Link to Capital Defender Website
Trial Attendance	404
Billing Guidelines	Attorney Billing Practices
Cap on Cases (MIT)	Cap per Mitigation Specialist on the number of Open Capital Cases at the Trial or Post-Conviction Level
Cap on Cases (TC)	404
Mental Health Experts	404
Exceptional	404
Contact Visits	404
Expert Spending	Expert Requests and Spending
Training	Mandatory Training
Consults	Mandatory Consultation and Notification Policies for Capital Post-Conviction Cases
Mitigation Roster	Mandatory Mitigation Specialist Rosters
RJA	Racial Justice Act Claims in Capital Cases at the Appellate and Post-Conviction Levels

Successor MAR