Rule 5 - Appointment of Counsel5.1 Filing of Petition. When any petition or motion is filed in Pitt County against any juvenile, the Pitt County Clerk of Court shall assign court dates, assign an attorney from the list of qualified counsel, and assign a new JB file number, unless the juvenile has a pie-existing juvenile file number..5.2 Order of Assignment. The Clerk shall assign attorneys according to the appropriate list and in the sequence in which they appear on the juvenile list except as permitted by the Regulations or as ordered by a judge. The Clerk may appoint an attorney who is not next in sequence on the list if an attorney is unavailable, is ineligible for that particular offense, or has a conflict. If an attorney is already representing the particular juvenile, the same attorney shall be appointed to represent the juvenile, as long as that attorney is on the list of qualified counsel. No appointment shall be made by the Clerk of an attorney whose name does not appear on one of the master lists on file, except for good cause shown and in the interest of justice, and the Clerk shall notify the Public Defender if such an appointment is made. 5.3 Multiple Petitions. When a juvenile has multiple petitions and some offenses would warrant appointment of an attorney from List 4A and other offenses would warrant appointment of an attorney from List 4B, the Clerk shall appoint an attorney from List 4B to represent the juvenile in all of the pending cases. If a juvenile is currently represented by an attorney who is only on List 4A, and that juvenile receives a new petition alleging a high felony or transferrable offense, the juvenile shall be re-assigned to a new attorney from list 4B to represent the juvenile in all of the juvenile's matters.5.4 Parental Orders to Show Cause. When a Show Cause order that has been issued and served on any parent appears on the calendar, and the parent has completed an Affidavit of Indigency and has been approved by the Judge for court-appointed counsel, the Clerk will assign an attorney from List 4A.5.5 Judge's Inherent Authority. Nothing in these Rules shall inhibit the inherent authority of the judge presiding in Juvenile Delinquency Court to issues Show Causes and appoint attorneys.N.C. R. Prac. Sup. & Dist. Ct. Civ. P. 5
Adopted November 15, 2022, effective 1/1/2023.