FAQ: Out-of-District (OOD) work?

Question:  

I am an investigator. I've been asked by an attorney in another district to do some investigation here in my home district. 

I understand that I am suppose to bill to CASE / and OOD, but don't know how to bill to the client in another district?

Answer:

Revisions in defenderData allow us to bill to the client for Out-of-District work (OOD). To do so, you'll need the case number from the requesting district.

Ask the requesting district to get you the case number for the case, when they make the request. Below are illustrations of where that number can be found.

If you put that case number in for OOD work, you will bill to that client (without having access to the confidential details of that client's case).

This precision in OOD is very important, because we want OOD work to tie in with the Workload Drivers associated with that case. Anyone requesting help out of district must provide that other office the case number illustrated below, to permit this more-accurate billing.

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Case Edit Screen

Case Search Screen

Timesheet Screen

FAQ: Where to bill, when Task Codes Overlap?

Question:

I am confused about which task code to use because there is substantial overlap between INVE04 10.4.1, Review and Analyze Legal Documents, Case Related Documents, and Evidence (Work Center Descriptions 10.4.1-10.4.3) and ATTY06, Review Discovery, Research Charges, Penalties (Work Center Descriptions 12.6.1-12.6.4).  

When should we use one as opposed to the other?   

 

Answer:
The rule of thumb is to use the task code that most closely and accurately describes the work you are actually doing. 

In this example, use INVE04 if you are reviewing the documents to investigate the facts of the case (such as to identify witnesses), and use ATTY06 if you are reviewing the documents to identify legal issues (such as which motions to file pre-trial, which trial issues to pursue, or the potential sentencing ranges). 

In addition, while your role does not limit your billing to various tasks, the short-code prefix does provide some guidance to help select the appropriate code. The document review described in INVE04 will primarily be done by investigators. The document review described in ATTY06 will primarily be done by attorneys. While investigators and paralegals can bill to either code, the role-context of the task code also helps to explain the work targeted by that task code.

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FAQ: Interviewing Tolling/Mitigation Witnesses

Question:

I have identified a duplication in the Work Center Description.  The task code INVE02 (Obtain Records and Background Evidence) includes Work Center Description 10.2.4, Interview tolling/mitigation witnesses including friends, neighbors, teachers and classmates, counselors, prior employers and co-workers.  But, task code INVE05 (Prepare & Conduct Witness Interviews) includes Work Center Description 10.5.1, which contains the exact same language: “Interview tolling/mitigation witnesses, including friends, neighbors, teachers and classmates, counselors, prior employers and co-workers, etc.”  

What is the distinction, or is either code appropriate for that specific task? 

Answer:

Use task code INVE05.  You have identified a “typo” – an inadvertent duplication in the Work Center Description.  Note, however, that the duplication appears only on the non-trial Work Center Description between INVE02/WCD 10.2.4 (Obtain records and background evidence) and INVE05/WCD 10.5.1 (Prepare and conduct witness interviews).  Since witness interviews are the specific subject of INVE05 in both the non-trial and trial WCD's, INVE05 should be the task chosen to reflect a witness interview. 




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