IDS Executive Director

State of North Carolina•Durham, NC

17h•Onsite

About The Position

The North Carolina Office of Indigent Defense Services (IDS) is a statewide agency created by the General Assembly in 2000 to oversee the provision of legal representation to indigent defendants and others entitled to counsel at state expense. The Executive Director (Director) manages and directs IDS and serves as the chief executive officer of the agency. The Director is appointed by and reports to the IDS Commission for a four-year term, and is compensated with an annual salary of $168,565, as established by North Carolina law. The Director exercises broad administrative, fiscal, and policy leadership, and acts as the primary advocate for IDS’s interests before the General Assembly, the Administrative Office of the Courts, the courts, the indigent defense community, and the public. The primary purpose of the position is the expansion, maintenance, improvement, and oversight of systems for providing quality and cost-effective legal representation and related services in all cases where indigent people are entitled to state-paid representation, consistent with N.C. Gen. Stat. § 7A-498 et seq.

Requirements

Juris Doctor degree from an ABA-accredited law school and an active license to practice law in North Carolina required at time appointment commences
At least seven (7) years of experience in the defense of criminal or other cases subject to the Indigent Defense Services Act.
Knowledge of the North Carolina court system, including the (i) provision of legal services to indigent people across all case types covered by the IDS Act, (ii) applicable statutes and case law governing the Office, (iii) management, budgetary, and organizational practices required to lead a complex public agency, and (iv) emerging issues and national best practices in indigent defense, including workload standards, compensation models, and technology applications.
Skills in executive leadership of a complex organization, including strategic planning, staff development, budget development and fiscal oversight, and legislative relations and bill analysis.
Problem solving, clear oral and written communication (both internally and publicly), navigating sensitive matters with discretion and sound judgment, data analysis, and relationship building across diverse constituencies.

Nice To Haves

A proven commitment to quality indigent defense representation
Experience in the preparation, administration, and oversight of a significant budget or demonstrated collaboration with financial officer.

Responsibilities

Strategic leadership and system development, including implementation of a long-term strategic plan for IDS, the expansion of network of public defender offices and enhanced support for private assigned counsel, improvement to the public defense system generally, and reporting to the Commission and the General Assembly.
Budget and fiscal oversight, including management of a more than $172 million budget, oversight of fiscal operations, advocating for IDS’s budgetary and legislative needs before the General Assembly, and ensuring responsible stewardship of public funds.
Technology and administrative modernization, including providing strategic direction for IDS's technology infrastructure, including those that affect attorney compensation, case management, discovery tools, and other emerging technologies.
Staff leadership and organizational management, including recruitment and supervision of staff, providing budgetary oversight and support to Chief Public Defenders, establishing personnel policies and practices consistent with applicable law and IDS’s values, and engaging with stakeholders and cross-agency partners.
Development of policy, rules, and standards, including assisting the Commission in developing rules, policies, qualification standards, performance standards, and workload guidelines, and statewide indigency determination standards.
Identifying areas of research and development that advance the public defense system in North Carolina.