Criminal Defense Attorney - Choosing the Right One

If you have been or expect to be charged with a criminal charge you should have the representation of the best criminal defense attorney you can afford. Criminal charges can be difficult to fight and if you are under represented the impact of charges can last a lifetime. The rule of thumb in regard to hiring a legal defense team is to hire the best attorney that you can afford even if it means mortgaging your house to do so. The initial upfront cost for your defense is an investment in your future and your freedom. The majority of criminal defense cases end with a plea bargain but some actually do go to trial. Your attorney’s job is to what is in your best interest which may mean fighting the charges clear to court and forcing the state to prove their case against you or it may mean accepting a plea bargain that gets you as little jail time as possible.

Make sure the attorney you actually select understands what outcome you are after and make sure that you understand the cost that is involved over the long duration a case may take. Depending on the seriousness of the charge and your past criminal history and ties to the community, you may or may not be sitting in a jail waiting for your trial. A trial can take up to a year to process through, even in a system that guarantees a speedy trial so that is a lot of down time to contemplate. If you plea bargain out or are found guilty at trial the time you spent in jail will be taking off your total sentence time but if you are found innocent that’s just a lot of time in jail you won’t be compensated for.

If you intend to go to court make sure you hire an attorney that has actual court room experience. Many attorneys, even criminal defense ones, don’t have any actual court room experience because most cases are pleaded out before they go to court. You want to ensure that if you go to court, you won’t be the first case your attorney represents there. If you are putting up your house to pay your legal cost make sure you fully understand how far and where your money will go. Legal fees can add up quickly while the system itself moves slowly so you may run out of money before you go to court and end up with a court appointed counsel to defend you by the time your case hits the courts. If you fully understand how much your defense will cost you can afford to shop around for the best attorney you can afford for the whole procedure and not just some of it.