Request for Qualifications for Public Defense Services

CITY OF WENATCHEE

REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS

FOR PUBLIC DEFENSE SERVICES

SUMMARY OF REQUEST
The City of Wenatchee (“City”) is requesting qualifications from attorneys and/or law firms interested in contracting for public defense services for indigent defendants appearing to answer criminal charges in Chelan County District Court.

In reviewing the cases represented, this contract has represented a range of 1200 to 1800 annual cases, subject to the caseload limits adopted by the City.  Interested attorneys or law firms will be responsible for managing the inflow of cases and assuring appearances at all arraignment calendars and providing 24-hour access to unassigned clients in police custody.  The City will accept a variety of proposed structures and contract types with this RFQ; interested attorneys and firms will need to include their proposed services in the submittal.

The successful applicants will be responsible for performance of all of the obligations under contract in conformance with the Standards for Indigent Defense (SID), the Rules of Professional Responsibility, and the Washington State Bar Association, as adopted by City of Wenatchee Resolution No. 2001-04.

The term of the contract(s) will be for three (3) years, beginning January 1, 2026 and concluding December 31, 2028, with the option to extend for an additional three-year period.

RFQ SCHEDULE
Requests for Qualifications will be accepted until 5:00 p.m., Monday, June 30, 2025.

The full and complete copy of the Request for Qualifications can be found here: REQUEST FOR QUALIFICATIONS FOR PUBLIC DEFENSE SERVICES (pdf)