SIXTH DISTRICT APPELLATE PROGRAM

What SIXTH DISTRICT APPELLATE PROGRAM does

Sixth District Appellate Program (SDAP) is a private nonprofit legal organization founded in 1988 and headquartered at 95 S. Market Street, Suite 570, San Jose, California. It serves as the designated appellate project for the California Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District, providing court-appointed representation to indigent defendants in criminal and juvenile appeals, including delinquency, dependency, and federal habeas corpus matters. SDAP recruits and qualifies panel attorneys, administers their compensation claims, and provides substantive practice support (manuals, sample documents, MCLE training, staff attorney guidance) so that constitutional right-to-counsel obligations are met across the Sixth District.

SDAP's core offerings are (1) direct appellate representation via a panel of qualified attorneys, (2) a resource library including the SDAP Manual, Compensation Manual, multilingual sample briefs/motions/letters (English, Spanish, Vietnamese), and federal habeas procedural guidance, (3) a claims processing system (paper and eClaims) for panel attorney billing, and (4) annual MCLE programming culminating in the Gerald Z. Marer Award for Panel Excellence. Its technology stack is conventional: it relies on the TrueFiling electronic filing system mandated by the Sixth District Court of Appeal, the Judicial Council's eClaims platform, and its own informational website (sdap.org); no proprietary AI/ML or differentiated platform technology is in evidence.

The revenue model is fee-for-service at the panel-attorney level, with hourly rates set by the Judicial Council of California Appellate Court Services Division (currently $120-$140/hour through June 2026, rising to $145-$165/hour starting July 2026). SDAP itself is funded by the same state-administered court-appointed counsel program, making the Judicial Council effectively its sole counterparty. The go-to-market is non-commercial: attorneys apply to join the panel, are qualified by SDAP, and are appointed by the Sixth District Court of Appeal for specific cases, with no traditional sales motion, marketing spend, or external customer acquisition.

Name

SIXTH DISTRICT APPELLATE PROGRAM

Legal name

Sixth District Appellate Program

Website

https://sdap.org

Company type

Private

Founded year

1988

Operating status

Operating

Headcount range

11–50 employees

Short description

Sixth District Appellate Program is a San Jose-based nonprofit, founded in 1988, that administers court-appointed appellate counsel for indigent criminal and juvenile defendants before the California Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate District.

Ownership category

akta.pro rank

Product category

Appellate Legal Aid Services

NAICS

Offices of Lawyers (541110), Legal Services (5411), Legal Counsel and Prosecution (92213), Courts (92211)

SIC

Services-Legal Services (8111)

akta.pro primary industry

State/Provincial Courts & Judicial Administration (BPAIABAE)

Keywords

• Appellate legal representation
• Court-appointed counsel
• Indigent defense services
• Juvenile dependency appeals
• Criminal appellate advocacy

Headquarters

HQ city

San Jose

HQ country

United States

HQ region

North America

Offices1 record

Markets served

GTM type

B2B

Offering type

Services

Cost components

Personnel, Operations, Infrastructure, Technology or R&D

Revenue model

1. Court-Appointed Counsel Compensation: SDAP panel attorneys receive hourly compensation for representing indigent clients in court-appointed criminal and juvenile appeals. Rates vary by case type (independent, assisted, complex) and time period, funded through the Judicial Council of California Appellate Court Services Division.

Pricing tiers

Go-to-market motion1 record

Distribution channels1 record

Marketing channels3 records

Core offering

Sixth District Appellate Program provides court-appointed appellate legal representation to indigent criminal defendants and juvenile parties in the California Sixth Appellate District. It assigns staff attorneys and coordinates a private panel of qualified attorneys to handle criminal and juvenile dependency appeals, while also delivering training, procedural guidance, and resource materials to support panel members. Funding flows from the Judicial Council of California through court-appointed counsel compensation.

Product overview

Sixth District Appellate Program (SDAP) is a single-service legal organization providing court-appointed appellate representation for indigent clients in criminal and juvenile matters within the Sixth Appellate District. The organization operates as a unified offering with supplementary resources for panel attorneys: the core service is direct legal representation in appeals, supported by a panel attorney resource system (including manuals, research tools, practice guidance), a sample documents library (briefs, motions, letters in multiple languages), and a claims processing system for attorney compensation. These components work together to enable qualified attorneys to provide consistent, standardized representation across all case types.

Differentiator

Problem solved

Functional benefit

Products and services

• Court-Appointed Appellate Representation (Criminal and Juvenile) Appellate advocacy provided to indigent criminal defendants and juvenile parties in California Sixth District Court of Appeal matters, delivered by SDAP staff attorneys and coordinated panel counsel.
• Panel Attorney Program Recruitment, vetting, training, and administrative support for a private panel of attorneys who take on Sixth District appellate appointments, including access to SDAP's online resource library.
• Online Resource Library for Panel Attorneys A web-based library of appellate forms, procedural references, and training materials available to attorneys participating in the SDAP panel program.
• Panel Attorney Training Training sessions and instructional content delivered to panel attorneys covering appellate procedure, brief-writing, and oral argument in the Sixth District.

Named customers1 record

Segments3 records

Ideal customer profiles3 records

Technology focussed No

API detail

Has API

No

API docs

API detail

Core technology

AI maturity

App detail

Feature2 records

Partnerships

Three partnerships are on record, tiered core.

• California Court of Appeal, Sixth Appellate DistrictcoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerSDAP serves as the designated appellate project for the Sixth District Court of Appeal, providing appointed counsel representation for indigent defendants in criminal and juvenile appeals. SDAP is not the court of appeal but works in partnership with the court to fulfill the constitutional right to counsel.
• Judicial Council of CaliforniacoreStrategic or Co-development PartnerThe Judicial Council of California funds and administers the Appellate Court Appointed Counsel Program. SDAP participates in the statewide program, with compensation rates and policies set by the Council through the Appellate Court Services Division.
• TrueFilingcoreTechnology or IntegrationElectronic filing system required by the Sixth District Court of Appeal. SDAP provides guidance and resources for attorneys to use TrueFiling for all appellate filings.

Scale indicators1 record

Recent moves6 records

Expansion highlights4 records

Direct peers

• California Appellate Project (CAP): CAP San Francisco provides court-appointed appellate counsel and death-penalty representation in California. It uses the same statutory panel-attorney infrastructure funded by the Judicial Council, making it a structural peer to SDAP.
• California Appellate Project - Los Angeles (CAP-LA): CAP-LA provides court-appointed appellate counsel for indigent defendants in the Second District (Los Angeles). It uses the same panel-attorney model and rate framework, and SDAP staff attorney Randall Conner is identified as a former CAP-LA panel member.
• Appellate Defenders, Inc. (ADI): ADI provides court-appointed appellate representation for indigent defendants in the Fourth District (San Diego). It operates under the same Judicial Council-funded panel-attorney structure as SDAP, with shared rate schedules and resource-library approach.
• Habeas Corpus Resource Center: California state agency providing post-conviction representation including capital and non-capital habeas proceedings. Closely related to SDAP because SDAP's mandate expressly includes federal habeas review guidance under 28 U.S.C. § 2254.
• Central California Appellate Program (CCAP): CCAP is the appellate project serving multiple California districts (notably the Second and Fifth), delivering court-appointed representation, MCLE training, and eClaims processing under the same Judicial Council framework. Listed as a partner sharing MCLE training videos with SDAP.
• First District Appellate Project (FDAP): California's First District appellate project providing court-appointed counsel for indigent criminal and juvenile appeals in San Francisco. Operates the same statutory model as SDAP under a parallel Judicial Council designation, and is referenced in SDAP's own filing-requirements resources.

Broad incumbents

• Federal Public Defender's Office (Northern District of California): Federal defender organization providing trial and appellate representation for indigent federal defendants in Northern California. Related to SDAP because SDAP's content covers federal habeas review and many SDAP clients transition into federal proceedings.
• California Office of the State Public Defender: State agency providing direct appellate and post-conviction representation, particularly in capital cases. Operates a broader statewide mandate than SDAP's single-district focus but shares the same Judicial Council funding and indigent-defense mission.

Market position

Strengths5 records

Weaknesses5 records

Competitive moat4 records

Key risks5 records

Key highlights6 records

Customer concentration

• LinkedInlinkedin.com/company/sixth-district-appellate-program

Revenue estimate

Valuation estimate

Number of profiles

Profiles6 records

Funding overview

Funding rounds

Investors

Funding detail is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

M&A

Investments

M&A and investment is available on the Subscription and Enterprise plan.Contact sales →

Frequently asked questions about SIXTH DISTRICT APPELLATE PROGRAM