Assistant Public Defender 1

The Office of the Ohio Public Defender (OPD) seeks a committed, motivated, and independent worker to serve as an Assistant Public Defender 1 (APD1) in our Policy & Outreach Division – with a focus on OPD’s County Outreach and Reimbursement efforts. The Policy & Outreach Division serves as the main point of contact for county indigent defense systems, oversees reimbursement to the counties, and is responsible for the agency’s work with media, social media, legislation, administrative policy and overall agency outreach.

Under the supervision of the Policy & Outreach Deputy Director, the APD1 will focus their work on OPD’s County Outreach and Reimbursement efforts. The APD1 will provide counsel and technical assistance to state and county agencies and indigent defense providers and participants. You will collaborate with county-level system parties and stakeholders on compliance with standards and developing, improving, and implementing systems that comply with standards. In this position, you will be headquartered in Columbus and expected to travel to counties across the State of Ohio (up to 40% of your time). You will play a pivotal role in providing guidance and support to county indigent defense systems, including compliance with standards, guidelines and administrative rules related to indigent defense.

A portion of your time will also be dedicated to providing legal counsel to the Reimbursement Program of the Division. The Reimbursement Program is responsible for administering reimbursement to Ohio’s 88 counties for the operation for their indigent defense systems. You will research, analyze and interpret legal issues and inquiries related to reimbursement, contracts, recoupment, and other indigent defense system concepts and processes. You will also do work to support and facilitate use of OPD Online (a web-based application dedicated to providing public defenders throughout the State of Ohio with one unified system to manage contacts, cases, calendars, documents and billing and a new section of OPD Online that is still under development that pertain to reimbursement which when complete will provide court-appointed attorneys, judges, and auditors to process billing and reimbursement related to indigent defense).

Overall, your work will be an integral component of ensuring the OPD supports Ohio’s county level indigent defense systems. A successful candidate will have working knowledge of Ohio’s indigent defense system, be highly skilled in verbal and written communication, excel in collaboration and teamwork, have a passion for data and research, and be motivated to assist and support county parties and stakeholders with indigent defense services. The position currently offers you the opportunity to work from home for a portion of time each week, so a successful candidate will be self-motivated and comfortable communicating via Microsoft Teams or other conferencing software during those times.

Essential duties of the APD 1 include but are not limited to:
-Receive and respond to requests for guidance from county personnel (e.g., answer questions regarding standards and guidelines on indigent defense reimbursement, technical aid on client case management and personnel management; communicate policy and procedure best practices; research & report on precedent; provide data-driven representation guidance)
-Assist with answering questions from public defender offices, appointed counsel, and other OPD employees about Ohio’s indigent defense system and funding
-Review county indigent defense data for legal compliance pursuant to code (e.g., audit paper and electronic county submissions for compliance with R.C. 120 & O.A.C. 120; travels to county offices to meet with and/or observe practitioners).
-Build and maintain professional relationships with county officials, judges, an attorneys
-Conduct statistical analysis of standards established by rule regarding conduct of county public defender offices and appointed counsel systems in state; recommend changes to agency standards and guidelines
-Assist with the development, testing, deployment, maintenance, and improvement of OPD Online -- including providing research and counsel on any legal questions related to the application
-Develop recommendations regarding indigent defense reimbursement standards, guidelines and rules (e.g., conduct legal analysis & review of data, records, Ohio Administrative Code, Ohio Revised Code, & OPD’s Standards & Guidelines for Appointed Counsel Reimbursements, State Maximum Fee Schedule, & County Public Defender Reimbursement)
-Draft memorandum & other correspondence
-Conduct legal reviews of agency contracts & received public records requests
-Appear in public and private settings on behalf of State Public Defender to discuss law and policy.
-Assist other Assistant Public Defenders with researching, analyzing, and interpreting issues of law