There are many points to consider when hiring a Florida criminal attorney. The next is a listing of some (but by no means all) of things that you should look at when hiring a Florida criminal lawyer:
1. Be certain that the attorney you want to hire actually handles criminal cases. Don’t hire your divorce lawyer or the lawyer who drew up your will to take care of your criminal case. You wouldn’t hire a brain surgeon to operate on your heart can you? Because criminal defense is really a specialized field of law, you have to hire a lawyer who focuses on this particular field.
2. Ensure that the Florida criminal lawyer you would like to hire handles the particular type of criminal case that you have. If you are charged with murder, don’t hire a lawyer would you only drunk-driving cases. Find a lawyer instead who has experience handling murder cases. Or in case you are charged with a federal crime, don’t hire a Florida lawyer who handles crimes only in state court. Look for a lawyer instead who has experience handling federal cases.
3. Ensure that the Florida criminal lawyer you would like to hire has a large amount of experience handling your particular kind of case. For example, even if the lawyer you would like to hire handles only drunk-driving cases, did he / she graduate from law school 90 days ago and therefore has hardly any actual experience handling such cases?
4. Avoid hiring a Florida criminal attorney who promises to you a specific outcome. It really is impossible for a lawyer whom you have just met and who knows nothing about your case except what you have told him to inform you how your case will come out with any degree of certainty.
5. If your goal is to resolve your case without a trial, you may not have to hire the very best criminal trial lawyer in town. You might like to look instead for anyone who has experience successfully negotiating your particular type of criminal case. On the other hand, if you definitely want to have a trial, be sure that the Florida criminal attorney you hire has significant experience trying cases and isn’t simply an “office” lawyer.
6. If you are hiring a specific Florida criminal lawyer to focus on your case, ensure that that specific lawyer and not one of her associates may be the lawyer who will actually be working on your case and going to trial with you.
7. Hire a Florida criminal attorney whom you feel comfortable working with after meeting him and discussing your case. Don’t hire a lawyer who is pressuring you to head to trial if your goal is to strike a satisfactory deal with the prosecutor immediately. However, don’t hire a lawyer who’s pressuring you to have a plea bargain if everything you really want is really a trial.
8. Make sure that the Florida criminal lawyer you would like to hire has time to focus on your case. If the lawyer you would like to hire is starting a month-long federal trial next week, he may not be the criminal lawyer best suited to represent you if your case takes a lot of work and your trial date is approaching fast.
9. Be certain that the Florida criminal attorney you would like to hire includes a support staff that can adequately handle your case. Does the lawyer have, for instance, a secretary, an investigator, a paralegal, and usage of expert witnesses that may be needed so that you can properly represent you at trial? If not, you may want to search for another lawyer.
10. If the Florida criminal lawyer you intend to hire is quoting you a fee that is clearly a lot more or a lot significantly less than the going rate, consider why. If the fee being quoted will be a lot more than the going rate, could it be because the lawyer is that superior to her competitors? If she is not that far better, than why should you pay that fee? On the other hand, if the fee being quoted is a lot less than the going rate, could it be because the lawyer is merely starting out and contains little experience handling your particular type of criminal case? If so, you may want to search for another lawyer. Escritório de Advocacia