Criminal Justice Act of 1964

E71452

The Criminal Justice Act of 1964 is a landmark U.S. federal law that established and funded a nationwide system for providing legal representation to indigent defendants in federal criminal cases.


Statements (43)

Predicate Object
instanceOf United States federal statute
criminal procedure law
administeredBy Judicial Conference of the United States
aimedAt ensuring equal access to justice regardless of financial status
allows creation of federal public defender organizations
use of panel attorneys for indigent defense
amended earlier ad hoc practices for appointing unpaid counsel in federal courts
appliesTo federal criminal prosecutions
indigent defendants in federal criminal proceedings
basedOn Sixth Amendment right to counsel
category 1964 in American law
United States federal criminal legislation
codifiedIn Title 18 of the United States Code
country United States of America
surface form: "United States"
enactedBy 88th United States Congress
established federal system of appointed counsel for indigent defendants
framework for federal public defender organizations
fundedBy federal government of the United States
historicalSignificance first comprehensive federal statute providing for compensation of court‑appointed counsel in federal criminal cases
implementedBy federal courts of appeals
federal district courts
influenced development of institutional federal public defender offices
jurisdiction federal courts of the United States
legalArea criminal justice
right to counsel
policyGoal to improve quality and availability of defense representation in federal courts
presidentAtEnactment Lyndon B. Johnson
protects rights of defendants unable to afford counsel
provides appointment of counsel for financially unable defendants
compensation for court‑appointed private attorneys
payment for expert services for indigent defense
payment for necessary investigative services for indigent defense
purpose to establish a comprehensive system for appointing and compensating counsel for financially eligible defendants
to provide legal representation for indigent defendants in federal criminal cases
relatedTo Gideon v. Wainwright
federal public defender system
requires each federal district to adopt a plan for furnishing representation to eligible defendants
scope covers representation at every stage of federal criminal proceedings
includes direct appeals in federal criminal cases
sectionNumber 18 U.S.C. § 3006A
signedBy Lyndon B. Johnson
typeOfRightImplemented statutory right to appointed counsel in federal criminal proceedings
yearEnacted 1964

Referenced by (3)

Full triples — surface form annotated when it differs from this entity's canonical label.

federal defender services authorizedByStatute Criminal Justice Act of 1964
subject surface form: "Federal defender services"
Committee on Defender Services legalBasis Criminal Justice Act of 1964