HOW TO CHOOSE A LAWYER

If you’ve been arrested for drunk driving, don’t even think about proceeding without a lawyer.  A person who represents himself or herself in court has a fool for a client. 

IF YOU'RE FACING JAIL, YOU NEED A LAWYER, EVEN IF YOU'RE GUILTY

• First, even if you believe that you're guilty, you're still legally presumed innocent. A good lawyer can evaluate the strength of the proof against you in ways that you cannot do yourself. 
• Second, a major issue in every case is whether the police overstepped their bounds and unlawfully stopped, arrested, tested and charged you.  A good lawyer will evaluate whether you were treated properly.  If your rights were violated, there may be no case against you.
• Finally, the help of a good lawyer is critical in limiting the damage that an OWI  DUI case can have on your family, your life and your livelihood. A good lawyer will direct you to the help and counseling that you may need to rebuild and restore your life after the damage of alcohol and an OWI case.  Of course a good lawyer can minimize the penalties such as jail and revocation.

CHOOSE A LAWYER EXPERIENCED IN FIGHTING OWI DUI CASES

There are various different kinds of lawyers out there, and you will need to know how to choose.  In general, you will find the following:

• Public defenders
• Discount lawyers
• General Practitioners
• Extremely expensive criminal and owi lawyers
• Board Certified DUI Defense specialists (also expensive).

Avoid the discount lawyer.  You will get only what you pay for, and that won’t be much.  Discount lawyers make their money by a handling high volume of cases or by maintaining unreasonably low office overhead (no secretary, etc).  These lawyers are not skilled in analyzing and defending cases.  Rather, they are skilled in quickly disposing of cases by guilty plea, to maintain their profit margin.  Be skeptical of any lawyer who charges a retainer less than $1500.00 on a first offense, and $2000.00 on a second offense. 

Avoid the general practitioner, that is, the lawyer who does some criminal work but also handles real estate, probate, divorce, wills, etc.  Such a lawyer may be reasonably priced (with fees in the $1500-$2000 range), but will lack the specialized knowledge and skill necessary to defend a drunk driving case.  This may be true even if the lawyer handles a significant number of drunk driving cases.  Most likely, few of these cases are fought rather than plea-bargained.  Further, a lawyer who has a reputation as a fighter tends to be able to negotiate the better plea bargains, when necessary.

You are far better off with a public defender (if you qualify for such representation) than a discount lawyer or a general practitioner.  Although public defenders are often overworked, they are skilled and dedicated specialists.

Be very cautious if you wish to hire the most pre-eminent criminal defense lawyer you can find.  It is true that with a little research, you will be able to find the Johnny Cochran, F. Lee Bailey or Barry Scheck of your city.  If you live in a smaller community, which does not support criminal defense specialists, it makes sense to go to the nearest large city.  Expect these kinds of lawyers to charges retainers in the range of $10,000.00 and up, with substantial additional fees for trial, and more if it is for a repeat offense with a substantially enhanced penalty.  Be aware, however, that some of the more famous criminal lawyers may not be experienced in drunk driving cases, as these are seen as too minor.  So, make sure that you get a lawyer who understands the intricacies of a drunk driving case.

Drunk driving defense is now recognized as a separate specialty from general criminal defense.  The American Bar Association has accredited the National College For DUI Defense ( www.NCDD.com) as the organization that may Board Certify specialists in this field.  In Wisconsin, only an attorney that is certified by an ABA accredited board may lawfully call himself a specialist. If you are planning to fight your case, always choose a lawyer that is active in the NCDD and, if you are able, choose a board certified NCDD specialist.  NCDD specialists will generally charge retainer fees in the area of $6500. to $10,000. depending on the case, with much higher fees for felony cases.

Choose a lawyer with extensive experience in fighting OWI DUI cases at jury trial.  Be careful, because we have seen ex-prosecutors claim to have extensive OWI DUI jury trial experience, which was almost all as a prosecutor (a fact that they will neglect to mention).  Make sure that the lawyer is experienced in defending these cases at jury trial.  

Always avoid the low-priced, high volume lawyer.

GET THE BEST LAWYER THAT YOU CAN AFFORD,
NOT THE CHEAPEST ONE THAT YOU CAN FIND.

An example of an eminent  OWI DUI specialist is California attorney Lawrence Taylor, who literally wrote the book on drunk driving defense.  His website www.duicentral.com is a valuable resource.

You should also check the national website: www.NCDD.com .

If you can’t afford a qualified lawyer, a public defender is a far better choice than a discount lawyer or a general practitioner.

You should be able to schedule a free initial consultation, where the lawyer should spend between one-half hour and one hour with you discussing your case.  The discussion should include a recitation by you and brief analysis by the lawyer of the following issues (although not necessarily stated in this order or format): Or you may start with the kind of online case evaluation offered at my website.

Because of the seriousness of OWI/ DUI in Wisconsin, it's also important for you to know about The Six Key Factors In A Drunk Driving Case.

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