Santa Clara County's public defenders say they are drowning in cases, buried under a crush of files and paperwork that leaves little room to actually defend the people they represent. Attorneys describe workloads that squeeze out investigations, client visits and serious court preparation, and some lawyers are taking medical leave or walking away from the office entirely. All of this is hitting just as county leaders brace for a tight budget cycle that could decide whether the office can hire badly needed replacements or be forced to shrink.
Numbers from Public Defender Damon Silver's office show just how stretched things have become. Last year, 46 felony attorneys handled more than 6,400 cases, while 19 misdemeanor attorneys covered 13,545 cases, which works out to roughly 139 felony cases and 713 misdemeanor cases per attorney. The office says those workloads blow past national limits by as much as 400%, and the strain has already contributed to health-related leaves and departures among younger staff worried about potential layoffs. "I'm confident that the County Administration values the critical service we provide and the precarious staffing situation we face," Silver told San José Spotlight.
Budget Squeeze Could Make Hiring Impossible
County officials say the caseload crunch is colliding with a major budget problem that traces back to recent changes in federal funding. The Board of Supervisors approved mid-year cuts in February, and administrators now estimate a roughly $470 million shortfall for the coming fiscal year, with about $270 million still to close, according to the County of Santa Clara. To plug the gap, the county has already begun realigning programs and deleting hundreds of positions in an effort to protect core services, putting extra pressure on any request to add public defender staff.
How Santa Clara Stacks Up Against New Standards
The fight over staffing is unfolding against a backdrop of new research that suggests many public defense offices need far fewer cases per lawyer than anyone thought in past decades. A 2023 study by RAND updated national workload recommendations using weighted case types and found that modern caseload ceilings should be significantly lower than older guidance. RAND's National Public Defense Workload Study has quickly become a touchstone for policymakers and defenders arguing for more attorneys, and RAND's analysis breaks down how much time different case types require and why 1970s-era limits are no longer realistic in today's courts.
Regionwide Crisis
Santa Clara is not the only county feeling the heat. In San Francisco, a judge recently fined the public defender for refusing new felony cases because attorneys were already overloaded, and in Alameda County, public defenders have taken to the streets with protests to spotlight what they call unsustainable workloads. Those developments have been chronicled by local and national outlets, including reporting that Oakland lawyers, dressed in black, warned the right to counsel is dead.
What To Watch: Budget Day And Hearings
All eyes now turn to the county's budget calendar. The County Executive's recommended budget is scheduled for online release on May 1, 2026, with workshops and public hearings set for mid-May that could determine whether the Public Defender's Office gets any relief. Local advocates and the District Attorney have both warned that the choices made this spring will shape the right to counsel in Santa Clara County for years to come, with District Attorney Jeff Rosen saying, "both need to receive the funds that make our community safe, while keeping the process fair" and activist Raj Jayadev cautioning that public defenders are going to be needed even more, per San José Spotlight. The county calendar lists the May 1 release and subsequent budget workshop dates: County Budget Calendar.
If the Board trims safety-net spending, public defenders and clients alike warn that the criminal justice system will feel the impact, in the courtroom and on the street. The decisions due in May will send a clear signal about whether Santa Clara County plans to shore up the right to counsel or let caseloads climb even higher.
