Before retaining an attorney, the first rule should be specialization is
the key. You wouldn’t go to a podiatrist for a brain tumor. Hiring aDUI attorney is no different. It is important to understand that DUI is vastly different
than most other types of criminal offenses. For example, a
DUI lawyer needs to have a comprehensive background in dealing with breath, blood
and urine testing. Chemical testing in whatever form is the backbone of
most DUI cases. A DUI Manslaughter or Serious Bodily Injury case is almost
always going to involve a blood draw. Sometimes a person appears at a
hospital and a doctor or nurse will typically draw blood for medical purposes.
Under that scenario, it is crucial that the attorney is knowledgable about
a person’s privacy rights concerning medical records. The point
is, DUI is a highly specialized area of law. One should only hire a firm
that dedicates itself to the defense of
drunk driving cases.
Simply because someone does something often does not mean that they do
it well. When retaining a
DUI lawyer, a history of success means everything. Therefore, it is crucial to see
for yourself how often the
attorney wins. The
Florida Bar allows attorneys to publish their past success so long as each case is
objectively verifiable. What does that mean? For my money, I would want
to see the actual case numbers assigned to a particular case so that I
can look it up for myself. I would want to see a Judge’s name attached
to the case. Finally, I would like the date that the lawyer won a particular
case. Therefore, objectively verifiable means that you can look at a case
on an attorney website and see for yourself all of the above referenced
information in order to feel confidant that the case result is real.
Finally, it is important that the lawyer wins cases that have similar facts
to your case. For example, if my case involves an accident and a refusal
to submit to breath testing, I want to know that the DUI attorney has
not only handled this type of case, but more importantly, that they were
successful. Thus, beyond the case numbers, dates and Judges’ names,
you want to be able to see the facts of each case in order to compare
it to your own. Additionally, you want to read the results of each case.
Being arrested for DUI and ultimately choosing the right attorney can
be stressful. In the end, it boils down to three important questions.
First, how much of the lawyer’s practice is geared towards the defense
of DUI. Next, is the lawyer winning on a consistent basis and can I see
the results for myself. Finally, are the past results factually similar
to my case. If you the lawyer those three questions then you are on the
right track. For additional questions please call
Parks & Braxton
(305) 655-2900.