FEDERAL PUBLIC DEFENDER
Southern District of Texas
Federal Sentencing Guidelines Amendment Update
CJA Panel Training
Live Zoom Presentation
Wednesday, May 31, 2023

The Criminal Justice Act (“CJA”) provides for the appointment of counsel in criminal cases to persons who are financially unable to obtain adequate representation. 18 U.S.C. § 3006A(a). In the Southern District of Texas, in cases where the Federal Public Defender has not been appointed to represent a defendant who is entitled to the assistance of appointed counsel, individual defense attorneys are chosen from a federal panel. The Federal Public Defender is charged with assuring that members of the CJA panel are familiar with federal criminal practice.

After three years with no quorum, the U.S. Sentencing Commission is operational again. In April 2023, the Commission voted to promulgate numerous proposed Guidelines amendments. Absent Congressional action, these amendments will go into effect on November 1, 2023. As part of our jobs as federal practitioners we are constantly consulting and advising our clients on the U.S.S.C. Sentencing Guidelines and how the Guidelines may impact a potential sentence.

This CLE will provide attendees with training on the anticipated amendments as well as the legal arguments for requesting that favorable amendments be applied before the effective date and for blocking unfavorable amendments from increasing some clients’ Guidelines range.

AGENDA

The State Bar of Texas MCLE Department has approved this seminar for 1.0 hrs. of CLE credit (Course No. 174197953). There is no cost for participants or for those attorneys wishing to apply for the CLE credit. If you have any questions, contact Dora Madrigal at This email address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it..

This seminar is for attorneys eligible or seeking to become eligible to take CJA appointments.