Justice does matter

We are a law firm providing representation in criminal and juvenile appeals for indigent clients in the San Jose area
(we are not the court of appeal)

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    Sixth District Appellate Program

The SDAP Way

A Passion for Justice

SDAP’s attitude toward the representation of indigents is that expressed in Von Moltke v. Gillies (1948) 332 U.S. 708:

“Undivided allegiance and faithful, devoted service to a client are prized traditions of the American lawyer. It is this kind of service for which the Sixth Amendment makes provision. And nowhere is this service deemed more honorable than in case of appointment to represent an accused too poor to hire a lawyer, even though the accused may be a member of an unpopular or hated group, or may be charged with an offense which is peculiarly abhorrent.” (Id., at pp. 725-726, fn. omitted.) Read more.

San Jose Historic Courthouse

News From The Director

New Panel Payment System

The Judicial Council has announced that effective September 28, 2024, panel payments under the Court Appointed Counsel Program will be made through ADP, rather than coming from the State Controller’s Office (SCO). Panel attorneys need not take any action. Existing systems, such as the eClaims ...
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augment

Mandatory Form for Augment Motions

There is now an updated form proposed order for augment motions. All motions to augment the record filed in the Sixth District Court of Appeal must be accompanied by the court's fillable standard order form that can be found here. For civil cases, use this form. The ...
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Proofs of Service With No-Issue Briefs

SDAP has been informed by the Court of Appeal that in several, recent cases – particularly in juvenile cases – the Court has had difficulties getting the client’s address to send the client the standard letter advising them of their rights when a no-issue brief ...
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File Omission Letter in 6DCA

When filing an omission letter in the superior court, the Sixth District Court of Appeal requires the letter be filed and served on the Court of Appeal through TrueFiling. It is not enough to just serve the Court of Appeal. If the letter is only ...
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Mandatory Forms for EOTs

Parties are required to use the Judicial Council’s standardized forms when requesting extensions of time in the Sixth District. Attorneys might have their EOTs rejected if the form is not used. If you have any questions, please reach out to your staff attorney buddy. An ...
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Review Petitions Should Always be Filed as Criminal Cases

Recently, we have seen some dependency panel attorneys face difficulty in utilizing Truefiling to file review petitions in the California Supreme Court. When initiating a new case by filing an original petition – including a writ petition or petition for review – select “File” and ...
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Practice Tools

Transferring Exhibits

Pursuant to California Rules of Court, rule 8.224, there are two methods for transferring trial court exhibits to the Court of Appeal: (1) a designation can be filed in the trial court; or (2) a motion can be filed in the Court of Appeal. Based ...
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New Panel Payment System

The Judicial Council has announced that effective September 28, 2024, panel payments under the Court Appointed Counsel Program will be made through ADP, rather than coming from the State Controller’s Office (SCO). Panel attorneys need not take any action. Existing systems, such as the eClaims program and panel attorney direct deposit elections will remain in […]

Mandatory Form for Augment Motions

There is now an updated form proposed order for augment motions. All motions to augment the record filed in the Sixth District Court of Appeal must be accompanied by the court’s fillable standard order form that can be found here. For civil cases, use this form. The court has given us the following guidance regarding three aspects […]

Proofs of Service With No-Issue Briefs

SDAP has been informed by the Court of Appeal that in several, recent cases – particularly in juvenile cases – the Court has had difficulties getting the client’s address to send the client the standard letter advising them of their rights when a no-issue brief has been filed on their behalf. In a few cases, […]

File Omission Letter in 6DCA

When filing an omission letter in the superior court, the Sixth District Court of Appeal requires the letter be filed and served on the Court of Appeal through TrueFiling. It is not enough to just serve the Court of Appeal. If the letter is only served on the Court of Appeal, the court might miss […]

Mandatory Forms for EOTs

Parties are required to use the Judicial Council’s standardized forms when requesting extensions of time in the Sixth District. Attorneys might have their EOTs rejected if the form is not used. If you have any questions, please reach out to your staff attorney buddy. An unlocked version of the form in criminal cases can be […]

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