FREQUENTLY ASKED QUESTIONS

• Can I represent myself? What can a lawyer do for me?
  

• What will it cost to get a lawyer?
  
• Should I pay for an initial consultation fee?
  
• What documents should I bring when I meet with a lawyer?
  
• How long should I wait before contacting a lawyer?
  
• Can I get good legal advice from a web site?

Can I represent myself? What can a lawyer do for me?

You can represent yourself — although it is not a good idea. The practice of law is a very complex field with increasingly harsh consequences. California and Federal laws are both full of complicated procedural, evidentiary, constitutional, sentencing and administrative license issues. Most judges treat unrepresented litigants with little respect and almost any “poor-performing” lawyer will be able to walk all over an unrepresented litigant.

The best analogy is: A doctor should not perform an operation on himself - a litigant (whether a lawyer or not) should not represent himself in court. It is difficult to think straight when you are in pain! When you are involved in your own case, you often lose sight of the goal and the technicalities (and realities) of the law. An experienced trial attorney will be able to work the maze of procedural rules, review and investigate the case for defects and strengths, suppress evidences, identify and compel discovery, negotiate from a position of strength, locate and work with experts, and take the offensive in court.

What will it cost to get a lawyer?

This varies as fees for most areas of legal practice are not set by law. Lawyers set their own rates. The reputation and experience of a lawyer and the geographic location in which he practices makes a significant difference.

As with all services – you get what you pay for. Some attorneys are nothing more than gimmicks. You should do more than make a phone call to a lawyer. Visit his office, check his bar record, and ask for references. Visit the court, ask around – a good attorney is well known in his community. Hint: If your attorney is talking plea or settlement at the first meeting, get a new attorney! A lawyer is hired to represent you and should be your strongest advocate. Maybe a plea or settlement is good advice – but rarely will a lawyer know enough at the first meeting to make such a recommendation. Look for an attorney who will investigate the case.

The range of fees are fairly large. Generally speaking, you can expect to pay $3500 to $8000 for an experienced and reputable lawyer to represent you in a misdemeanor case (including DUIs). Felony cases cost more and are often very fact specific. Hiring a cheap lawyer when you could spend years in jail probably doesn’t seem like a very good investment. (How much would you pay if your attorney could reduce your sentence a year or more by great advocacy on your behalf?)

Fees in civil, family law and administrative matters have the same wide range of potential costs. The range is generally $300 - $500 per hour and usually requires a deposit. Fees are usually determined based on your goals in the litigation and the complexity of the matter. Get a written agreement so that both you and your attorney understand what services are being performed and what the costs are.

Always get a written agreement and make sure you understand all the terms.

Should I pay for an initial consultation fee?

Our law office does not charge a consultation fee for your first office visit. We feel this meeting is one of the most important experiences you will have in your case. However, some other lawyers do charge such a fee – sometimes to weed out not so serious clients while others charge such a fee as general income. Whether a lawyer does or does not charge a consultation fee is not a very good indicator of his ability to do a good job. Visit your prospective lawyer, talk to him or her, and get a feel for the relationship you will have with your advocate. The quality of the visit is probably more important than the hour’s fee.

What documents should I bring when I meet with a lawyer?

The more information the lawyer has, the better the advice. You should bring everything that is related to your case. If you have names and contact information, bring that as well. It is often a good idea to write some notes about the event for which you are seeking legal help as this may assist your recollection of the small details which might be very important to the attorney.

Don’t worry if you have not collected any documents or photographs. The lawyer will be able to decide what actions will be necessary to conduct his investigation and pursue your case.

How long should I wait before contacting a lawyer?

If you are asking this question, get a lawyer now! Evidence and memories fade with time. Many procedural rules are also time based. For example: you have only 10 days after a DUI/DWI arrest to request a hearing with the DMV or you waive your right to the administrative hearing. DMV will act against your license without knowing your side of the story – and you could lose your license even if you were sober when you were stopped by the police.

In civil cases, the time to file or answer a complaint is defined in the law and can be difficult or impossible to fix if you are late filing the papers in court. Many people have lost the right to recover for their injuries because they waited too long to file in court. Others have paid for injuries they did not commit because they answered too late and defaulted. Some filing times are very short; i.e. six months for claims against California municipalities. Some time limits are confusing and fact specific. Further, if you walk into a lawyer’s office the day before a deadline, he will either not take your otherwise meritorious case or charge you hundreds or thousands more in fees.

Can I get good legal advice from a web site?

No. You should not rely on legal advice from anything other than a personal visit to a qualified, licensed, and experienced attorney. Many lawyer web sites have lists of instructions that may not even relate to your case or situation. Not all shoes fit the same, and not all advice is the same. Make an appointment with a trusted attorney, spend some time discussing your personal needs, ask questions, and hire the lawyer you are comfortable with.