One of the things I do a lot of as a Denver criminal defense lawyer is wait around. Is this a dirty little secret? Does that mean I don't add value for you in helping solve your legal issue? Hardly. For one, you basically need competent counsel to avoid being screwed over in the system, which is incredibly complex and difficult to navigate. Second, a lawyer will save you time out of your day and will be able to handle the lines more efficiently than you can.
If you try to go through and handle your case on your own, you'll find you wait in a ton of lines. There is a line to talk to the judge at the arraignment. There is a line to wait for the clerk and set the next date. There is a line at the collections window if you want to pay that day. And of course it's important to get there early to make sure you don't piss off the judge. You're already in enough trouble. And court doesn't operate at a different time from your job or other obligations. That means you've got to take time off, lose money, and generally sit around a lot.
So one thing a Denver criminal defense lawyer can do for you is wait in a lot of lines for you. We usually don't have to wait in exactly the same lines. Some of the hearings can be waived. Some courts give priority to represented parties so Denver criminal defense lawyers can meet with the prosecutor or the judge right away. Otherwise, an attorney can frequently schedule several clients together so he only has to meet with the prosecutor once. That means where it would take you an hour to wait in line, a lawyer only takes a few minutes out of his day, and can save you money effectively.
Thursday, May 31, 2012
Friday, May 25, 2012
Denver criminal defense lawyer / competence and fear
When you hire a Denver criminal defense lawyer, you might think there is an obligation that he will be competent. Well, there is. It's rule #1 of attorney ethics. But it's also a pretty complicated and difficult thing to enforce. First of all, a client hires the lawyer to be an expert. How's the client supposed to know when the lawyer is acting competently or not? The answer is they often don't. Obviously if a lawyer screws up enough, a prosecutor will see it, or a diligent client will finally catch on. But still, some of this stuff is scary.
In this vein I bring you Brian Rakofsky. Although he's not a Denver criminal defense lawyer (he practices in New Jersey), the story is instructive here. Basically straight out of law school he decided he could handle a murder trial. First chair, without help. The prosecution offered his client five years in prison. He told his client to turn down the offer. He then proceeded to completely screw up the trial, to the point where the judge had no choice but to declare a mistrial. Rakofsky had no idea what he was doing, to the point where he apparently couldn't serve process on witnesses. He was happy about the mistrial, with no regard for the fact that (1) his client was sitting in jail the whole time and (2) he had taken the 5 year offer off the table and his client would not be sentenced to 10 years.
And what did the State Bar of New Jersey do? Nothing, at least yet. He had his licensed suspended for a few months for failing to pay his fees (lawyers are always really concerned about money). But other than that, he'll be free to take more clients assuming he can get them, having had his professional reputation sullied all over the internet. I'd like to say you couldn't say the same thing for Denver criminal defense lawyers, but I'm sure there are some bad eggs out there willing to take your money. So pay attention to your lawyer's experience, and more importantly make sure your lawyer knows what he's doing when it comes down to the actual trial.
In this vein I bring you Brian Rakofsky. Although he's not a Denver criminal defense lawyer (he practices in New Jersey), the story is instructive here. Basically straight out of law school he decided he could handle a murder trial. First chair, without help. The prosecution offered his client five years in prison. He told his client to turn down the offer. He then proceeded to completely screw up the trial, to the point where the judge had no choice but to declare a mistrial. Rakofsky had no idea what he was doing, to the point where he apparently couldn't serve process on witnesses. He was happy about the mistrial, with no regard for the fact that (1) his client was sitting in jail the whole time and (2) he had taken the 5 year offer off the table and his client would not be sentenced to 10 years.
And what did the State Bar of New Jersey do? Nothing, at least yet. He had his licensed suspended for a few months for failing to pay his fees (lawyers are always really concerned about money). But other than that, he'll be free to take more clients assuming he can get them, having had his professional reputation sullied all over the internet. I'd like to say you couldn't say the same thing for Denver criminal defense lawyers, but I'm sure there are some bad eggs out there willing to take your money. So pay attention to your lawyer's experience, and more importantly make sure your lawyer knows what he's doing when it comes down to the actual trial.
Denver criminal defense lawyer / value added
In addition to being a Denver criminal defense lawyer, I'm also a big fan the the National Basketball Association. One thing that's even more clear with the NBA than with the law is that it's all about money. Particularly, it is all about how much value a player is adding to his team in relation to his salary. This isn't just about the owner's pocket book, it's also about putting a winning team out there. You see if an NBA team is paying Rashard Lewis like LeBron James (he's actually making more, can you believe that?) they can't spend the money elsewhere and can't win games. So a team needs to figure out how much value a player is adding in terms of how many games he's helping the team win.
You should do the same when looking for a Denver criminal defense lawyer. Attorneys fees are not cheap. There are a couple things you can do to make sure your lawyer is adding value. First, just ask. For minor traffic infractions and offenses, it's possible an attorney's fee simply won't be worth it. Sometimes the plea deal we can get is no better than the one you get simply by paying the ticket, then you'll have to pay the fee which might be as much as the ticket in the first place. It's worth having a Denver criminal defense lawyer look at the ticket, because it's possible he can get it dismissed, but don't pay unless you are relatively certain it will be worth it.
In cases where it's not this simple, the calculus is a lot more basic. Lawyers do add value, because you probably have no clue how to go about handling your own case for 90% of crimes or offenses. Even the plea bargain involves complicated considerations about the probability of winning at trial that a person with experience can help you with tremendously. So tread carefully with more serious stuff, but for a traffic ticket make sure you are getting some value for your fee.
You should do the same when looking for a Denver criminal defense lawyer. Attorneys fees are not cheap. There are a couple things you can do to make sure your lawyer is adding value. First, just ask. For minor traffic infractions and offenses, it's possible an attorney's fee simply won't be worth it. Sometimes the plea deal we can get is no better than the one you get simply by paying the ticket, then you'll have to pay the fee which might be as much as the ticket in the first place. It's worth having a Denver criminal defense lawyer look at the ticket, because it's possible he can get it dismissed, but don't pay unless you are relatively certain it will be worth it.
In cases where it's not this simple, the calculus is a lot more basic. Lawyers do add value, because you probably have no clue how to go about handling your own case for 90% of crimes or offenses. Even the plea bargain involves complicated considerations about the probability of winning at trial that a person with experience can help you with tremendously. So tread carefully with more serious stuff, but for a traffic ticket make sure you are getting some value for your fee.
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)