When an appeal is made based on the ineffective assistance of counsel, you may be eligible for a retrial. You need to tell the court that your public defender has not talked to you and ask the court to relieve the PD's office and appoint other counsel.Note that claiming ineffective assistance of counsel means that you give up some of your attorney-client confidentiality privileges with that attorney. If counsel is not willing to provide a signed affirmation, you must document your conversations with counsel and relay any helpful statements in your 440. To make this claim, you will need to file a motion for postconviction relief with the court that handled your case. Some courts have recognized that ineffective assistance also can be raised on direct appeal to the Board of Immigration Appeals (BIA). Effective assistance of counsel benefits everyone, not just the accused. A society that cannot trust its criminal justice system fails. When an attorney makes a mistake at sentencing, and that mistake harms the client, she may have provided ineffective assistance of counsel. If you can prove ineffective assistance of counsel, you may receive post-conviction relief.