The Commission provides training to its attorneys in a number of ways. Once a year, the Commission convenes a Public Defender Conference that provides six hours of training, including one hour of legal ethics. The Conference is held in Virginia and is staffed by high quality speakers and trainers who donate their time and expertise to improving the quality of Virginia’s indigent defense.
In order to assure the high quality of its non-attorney professional staff, the VIDC also sponsors training conferences for its office managers, investigators and sentencing advocates. Finally, the Commission provides funding each year for attorneys, investigators, and sentencing advocates to attend specialized training sponsored by agencies or organizations outside of the VIDC.
As a service to Virginia’s criminal defense bar, the VIDC also provides training opportunities for members of the private bar. The Commission co-sponsors with the University of Richmond’s T.C. Williams School of Law an annual Juvenile Law and Education Conference. Commission staff also assist the Criminal Law Section of the Virginia Bar Association with the planning of Virginia’s annual Capital Defense Workshop. The Chief Justice of the Supreme court of Virginia also offers at no cost advanced trial skills training for Virginia’s court appointed counsel. Finally, individual public defender offices sponsor training programs for office staff and members of local bar associations.
Registration Form (VIDC-Sponsored Trainings)
Please download and complete the registration form below for any of the VIDC-sponsored courses.
VIDC Certification Trainings
The certification training programs for 2012 are provided below.
2012 Certification Training Schedule
For an outline of certification requirements, please click on link below.
List of MCLE Approved Continuing Legal Education Programs certified by the Virginia Indigent Defense Commission for Maintaining Indigent Defense Certification, per Virginia Code §19.2163.03 (D) is available for downloading as an Adobe file.
Commission & MCLE-approved CLEs List
To request consideration for approval of a Criminal Law CLE from the VIDC for maintaining indigent defense certification, you may use our online Attorney Certification System (ACeS) or download the attached Adobe file, print, and complete as appropriate.
Other Training Programs
8th Annual Indigent Criminal Defense Seminar: Advanced Skills for the Experienced Practitioner-May 4, 2012 Please be advised this is not a VIDC-sponsored training. For more information, please contact Dolly Shaffner at (804) 775-0518 or IndigentDefenseSeminar@vsb.org.
17th Annual Robert E. Shepherd, Jr. Juvenile Law & Education Conference-May 11, 2012 Please be advised that this is not a VIDC-sponsored training. For more information, please contact the University of Richmond School of Law.
VIDC-Sponsored Training DVDs
All of the VIDC-sponsored trainings are recorded and available upon request. All DVDs may be requested by the president of your local bar association. All sessions must be proctored by the local bar association who requested the DVDs. DVDs are not provided to individual attorneys. In order to receive CLE credit, you must have two or more attorneys viewing the proctored DVD and must have the materials that go with the session. Please complete the DVD request form on our website www.indigentdefense.virginia.gov and fax it to Lori Hoover at (804) 662-7452.
All completed forms may be mailed or faxed to:
Attorney Certification
Virginia Indigent Defense Commission
1604 Santa Rosa Road, Suite 109
Richmond, VA 23229
Fax (804) 662-7452
For further information, please contact:
Training Administrator: Lori Hoover
Attorney Certification Verification: Ronda Holmes
Standards of Practice Enforcement: Jae K. Davenport