Vetting Attorneys For Defending Against Resisting Arrest NJ

By Laura Cooper


You may not ever envision yourself being arrested. However, if you have been suspected of breaking the law, you could find yourself placed in handcuffs and hauled off to jail. During the actual detainment process, your brain may tell you to do everything the arresting officer asks of you. Your instincts, however, might prevent you from following through on this advice. When you have been detained and charged with resisting arrest NJ residents like you are given the opportunity to defend yourself before a judge or jury. Your defense may best be presented by a qualified criminal defense lawyer.

You have the right to defend yourself in court. However, when you want to beat the charges, you might be advised to hire an experienced criminal defense lawyer to represent you. Hiring an attorney who practices in this area of the law can be particularly critical. A bankruptcy attorney or one who files and pursues personal injury cases may not know the current statutes that pertain to your case.

Likewise, you probably want an attorney who has handled cases similar or identical to yours in the past. You may prefer not to take your chances on a novice lawyer who is brand new to the courtroom. You similarly want to avoid hiring someone who has lost more case than he or she has won in court if you want to beat the charges against you.

After you get those specifics out of the way, you can then move on to hiring an attorney whose fees fall within the budget you have set aside for this purpose. If you technically cannot afford to retain the services of one, the court will have to by law provide one for you. This provision is covered under the Miranda rights, which are read to you by the police officer when you are first arrested.

However, if you can afford to retain the services of one, you might wish to know how much the services will cost you upfront. Most attorneys charge a retainer fee along with hourly rates during the time they are working on your case. Some also charge for extra costs like copying documents or courier services.

Most law firms will provide clients with an itemized list of expenses prior to a contract signing. This list can come in useful when you are deciding what services you want to include in the case. You also can refer to it when you are deciding whether or not to liquidate assets or apply for finance with which to fund your defense.

Most law firms also allow prospective clients to meet with attorneys to vet them during an initial free consultation. This consultation is held before the client signs the retainer contract. It usually lasts for about an hour and is used as an opportunity for clients and attorneys to get familiar with the case at hand.

You may not ever plan to be arrested for resisting arrest. However, if or when you are, you may want to retain an attorney quickly. You could find a qualified one to take your case by using these criteria in the vetting process.




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