§ 7A-455.1. Appointment fee in criminal cases. - North Carolina Statutes

§ 7A‑455.1.  Appointmentfee in criminal cases.

(a)        In every criminalcase in which counsel is appointed at the trial level, the judge shall orderthe defendant to pay to the clerk of court an appointment fee of fifty dollars($50.00). No fee shall be due unless the person is convicted.

(b)        The mandatory fifty‑dollar($50.00) fee may not be remitted or revoked by the court and shall be added toany amounts the court determines to be owed for the value of legal servicesrendered to the defendant and shall be collected in the same manner asattorneys' fees are collected for such representation.

(c)        Repealed by SessionLaws 2005‑250 s. 3, effective August 4, 2005.

(d)        Inability, failure,or refusal to pay the appointment fee shall not be grounds for denying appointmentof counsel, for withdrawal of counsel, or for contempt.

(e)        The appointment feerequired by this section shall be assessed only once for each attorneyappointment, regardless of the number of cases to which the attorney wasassigned. An additional appointment fee shall not be assessed if the chargesfor which an attorney was appointed were reassigned to a different attorney.

(f)         Of eachappointment fee collected under this section, the sum of forty‑fivedollars ($45.00) shall be credited to the Indigent Persons' Attorney Fee Fundand the sum of five dollars ($5.00) shall be credited to the Court InformationTechnology Fund under G.S. 7A‑343.2. These fees shall not revert.

(g)        The Office ofIndigent Defense Services shall adopt rules and develop forms to governimplementation of this section.  (2002‑126, s. 29A.9(a); 2003‑284, s.13.11; 2005‑250, s. 3; 2009‑451, s. 15.17I(a).)