Tom Jarvis

By Tom Jarvis It has been five years since the COVID-19 pandemic upended the world. While the World Health Organization (WHO) declared the novel coronavirus a global pandemic on March 11, 2020, it wasn’t until April that the gravity of the situation set in – it wasn’t going away anytime soon. In rapid succession, schools … Read more

By Tom Jarvis Much has been said about the public defender and conflict counsel shortage, but another piece of the puzzle is the prosecution. At first glance, you might not think the indigent defense crisis has direct implications for prosecutors, but the reality is that it affects them and the victims they represent just as … Read more

By Tom Jarvis With just under 500 attendees, the New Hampshire Bar Association’s 2025 Midyear Meeting (MYM), held on Friday, February 21, at the DoubleTree Hilton in Manchester, marked the highest turnout since in-person gatherings resumed after the COVID-19 pandemic. This year’s meeting, themed “Civility and the Rule of Law,” focused on the role of … Read more

By Tom Jarvis Previous articles in this series have explored the challenges encountered by the New Hampshire Public Defender (NHPD), but what happens when a public defender faces a conflict of interest – whether a direct conflict, a conflict with a co-defendant, a caseload issue, or other factors? In such cases, the NHPD refers the … Read more

This article is a continuation of the first article in the series examining the indigent defense crisis in the Granite State. By Tom Jarvis The first installment of the NHBA Indigent Defense Crisis Series examined the ongoing shortage of public defenders in New Hampshire and the systemic challenges fueling the crisis – high attrition rates, … Read more

By Tom Jarvis House Bill 253, a proposed measure in the New Hampshire Legislature, has sparked considerable discussion among legal professionals and policymakers. The bill aims to redirect funding generated through the Interest on Lawyers Trust Accounts (IOLTA) Program from civil legal services to the New Hampshire Public Defender’s (NHPD) office. HB 253 would require … Read more

By Tom Jarvis The New Hampshire Judicial Branch’s (NHJB) Family Treatment Court (FTC) in Sullivan County, launched in 2021, is the first of its kind in New Hampshire. It provides early intervention for families involved in abuse and neglect cases where substance use disorder impacts one or more parents. FTC aims to strengthen families by … Read more

This article is the first in a series examining the indigent defense crisis in the Granite State. By Tom Jarvis New Hampshire’s criminal courts are amid a crisis due to a critical shortage of public defenders, contract counsel, and court-appointed counsel. This has caused delays in the court system, leaving indigent defendants waiting for months … Read more

By Tom Jarvis The New Hampshire Judicial Branch recently enhanced its judicial infrastructure by creating the new role of magistrate. This position, established under House Bill 318 and codified in RSA chapter 491-B, aims to address challenges associated with the state’s evolving bail system. The magistrates will ensure that individuals arrested for serious offenses receive … Read more