Paulsen wrong to use legal fees for leverage

Saturday's Gazette highlighted the financial hardship young attorneys who accept court-appointed work are facing due to our state's failure to pay these attorneys' court-approved fees after they have completed their work.

The hourly rate for court-appointed cases has always been substantially below market. As the article revealed, young solo practice attorneys often rely on court-appointed cases to gain experience and provide a reliable source of income. However, the state has stopped paying these bills, resulting in significant financial hardship for many young attorneys.

As a lawyer, GOP House Speaker Kraig Paulsen knows Iowa has a constitutional obligation to provide poor defendants with an attorney; this obligation includes paying the court-approved attorney fees. However, Paulsen refuses to approve a Senate bill to fund the system, because he can use the attorneys' plight as “leverage” for the GOP's desired tax cuts.

Hurting real people to gain leverage for tax cuts is wrong.

Sara Riley

Cedar Rapids