I don't recall how many years ago it was that I pulled the plug on my participation on the federal Criminal Justice Act panel, but I do recall the cause: The folks administering the program thought nothing of rejecting requests for payment over the most trifling of things. I threw in the towel at the third or fourth request for a revision of a request for payment after a lengthy trial. It made no sense for me to pay paralegals to chase pennies.
I'm now throwing in the towel on the state's Special Public Defender program, and the cause is identical. After six months of dickering over an invoice I sent in after a murder trial I was asked to take in Norwich, I give up. I've determined the defenders are looking for a reason not to pay, so I am no longer looking to play in their sandbox.
