FAQs

You must bring:

• Your court summons, which should show your case number, charge, next court date and type of hearing scheduled
• Your two most recent pay stubs
• Your most recent bank statement
• A copy of your income tax return.
• $25 for a processing fee, payable by cash or check.

Yes, as of August 1, 2008, OPD will collect a $25 fee for District Court cases in addition to Superior Court cases. Assignment of counsel to qualifying applicants will not be denied due to inability to pay the fee at screening. This fee assessment in District Court is identical to the OPD screening fee in Superior Court cases and consistent with county code.

You may still come in for an interview. You will have to sign a promissory note for the $25, which will give you one to two months to pay.

Public defenders are free if you are determined to be indigent (please see our eligiblity page, Who We Serve, to find out if you qualify). If you have enough money that you are not considered indigent, but not enough to afford your own attorney, you are considered “able to contribute.” In this case, the OPD screener will have you sign a promissory note to help defray the cost of the attorney, which can be paid back over a period of months. In either case, under county law you still must pay the $25 processing fee.

No. The Office of the Public Defender decides if you qualify for a public defender. If you do, you will be given the name of a Public Defender Agency. Four business days later you can call that agency and find out the name and phone number of the attorney who has been assigned to your case.

You can call the Attorney of the Day at 206-447-3900 x519, Monday through Friday from 12:15 – 1pm to receive general legal advice. You can also refer to our Resource Links for other legal help.

8:30 a.m. to 4:30 p.m., Monday through Friday. You must have your court summons with you if you arrive after 4:15 p.m. for an interview or you will need to return the next day with your court summons. No appointment is necessary.

Only if you are outside of the area served by public transportation or are in the County Jail.

If you are being held on a misdemeanor charge, call the OPD office during business hours at 206-296-7662 to arrange a phone interview. If you are being held on a felony charge, an attorney will be assigned to you for your arraignment.

A court hearing where the defendant is asked to plead guilty or not guilty to the charges. OPD will provide an attorney to represent the defendant at arraignment.

An OPD screener is available at all Superior and District Court arraignments. There will be an attorney there to represent you.

At the time of your financial screening, the OPD interviewer will give you the name of the public defense agency you have been assigned to. We will also give the agency your case. They will assign an individual attorney to represent you. Four business days after your assignment you can call the agency to find out the name of your attorney. A list of the agencies and their phone numbers can be found on the Public Defender Agencies page.

OPD does its best to reassign returning clients to the same public defender agency as before when possible. If you are scheduled for a review hearing, you must have a financial screening to see if you still qualify for a public defender if it’s been more than 90 days since your last screening. If you’ve been screened in the past 90 days you do not need to be re-screened.

If you have a legitimate complaint about your attorney, send a letter in writing to the OPD Complaint Service Coordinator. Please see our complaints info page for more information.

No. OPD assigns your case to one of the four defender agencies based upon availability and legal requirements. The agency is then responsible for assigning your attorney.

No, as of April 2006, OPD no longer appoints attorneys in Seattle Municipal Court cases. If you have been charged with a crime in Seattle Municipal Court, you can apply for an attorney directly through the court. Please go to the Seattle Justice Center, 600 Fifth Avenue, First Floor, Window #11, Seattle, WA 98124 to be screened for a public defender. Their phone number is 206-615-0705.

No. The Office of the Public Defender handles only criminal, jailable charges in the King County courts. See Resources for civil legal aid agencies in the area.

The Office of the Public Defender does handle dependency cases when CPS is involved. Come in for an interview to one of our offices with your dependency case number, the type of hearing scheduled, and court dates. If you qualify, we will assign you an attorney.

No, OPD does not handle child support hearings. However, if you are being held in "contempt of court" for failing to pay child support, OPD will appoint you an attorney for the contempt issue only. (Contempt of court is a jailable offense.)

No. OPD only handles criminal charges. To get a protection order, contact either the Superior Court Clerk or District Court.

No. These hearings are for non-jailable offenses, and therefore we cannot appoint a public defender.

OPD handles misdemeanor appeals only. It does not handle felony appeals.

Nielsen, Broman & Koch (external): 206-623-2373
Washington Appellate Project: 206-587-2711

OPD uses the state definition of indigency to determine if someone qualifies for a public defender. For more information, see the eligibility page.

You can either call OPD at 206-296-7662 or King County Accounts Receivable at 206-296-1494. Please have your case number and customer number available when you call.

The Washington Courts (external) provides information on how to clear your record.