The court may excuse your failure to attach supporting affidavits or evidence if you allege ineffective assistance of counsel. The Supreme Court of Illinois decided that "a claim of ineffective assistance of counsel must come from the defendant himself" in People v. Bates.If you or a loved one is convicted of a crime, review your options with a skilled Chicago criminal appeal lawyer. Call O'Meaera Law at (312) 428-4000. Effective assistance of counsel benefits everyone, not just the accused. A society that cannot trust its criminal justice system fails. First, the defendant must demonstrate that counsel's performance was deficient. Note that claiming ineffective assistance of counsel means that you give up some of your attorney-client confidentiality privileges with that attorney. Responsible for the conduct of an attorney who is not operating as his agent in any meaningful sense of that word. As such, it is not uncommon for a defense attorney to fail to object to an improper aspect of a sentence.