Step 3: Multiply Projected Caseload by the NPDWS Standards to get Annual Hours Needed
Next, you must apply the NPDWS Standards (case weights) to your Projected Caseload. You must do this for each case type. Multiplying the standard by the number of projected cases, allows you to calculate the annual attorney time required to effectively represent those clients ("Annual Hours Needed").
Going forward, we will use the 2026 Projected Caseload for Fictional Jurisdiction shown below.
First, Fictional Jurisdiction’s provider would multiply the Projected Caseload of new Felony-High-LWOP cases (18) by the NPDWS Standard for Felony-High-LWOP case (286 hours). This calculation demonstrates that Fictional Jurisdiction would need 5,243 attorney hours to provide their clients with effective Felony-High-LWOP representation.
The provider would then repeat this process for each of the other 10 NPDWS case types. The table below shows the completed Annual Hours Needed calculations for our Fictional Jurisdiction using the 2026 Projected Caseload.
To determine the total hours of attorney time necessary for effective representation, Fictional Jurisdiction's provider then totals Annual Hours Needed for all case types.
This yields a total of 975,949 attorney hours needed to effectively represent its clients in 2026.