What to look for in a criminal defense attorney

by | Sep 11, 2014 | Lawyers and Law Firms

If you have been arrested and charged with committing a crime you have the right to a criminal attorney in Timonium, MD. The attorney can either be appointed by the court and you have no voice in the selection or you can hire a private attorney which is considered by far the best choice.

The lawyer that you will be looking for is not the same one you used to help you write your will, to buy your house or represent you when you were in a car accident. The lawyers who do this kind of work are civil lawyers; you want an attorney who deals with criminal law.

What is the difference?

Private criminal defense attorneys tend to have their own practice or in small partnerships and they tend to work in a specific geographic area. Civil lawyers on the other hand tend to work in large corporate law practices with offices in strategic cities across the country. The biggest factor is the nature of the work they do:

Large law firms tend to represent companies that do work nationwide or worldwide while a criminal attorney in Timonium, MD tends to represent clients who have local problems.

Corporations that require the services of large civil law firms have a continuous need for legal advice and representation while a person charged with a crime tends to be non-recurring or perhaps only needs legal advice sporadically.

In many cases a private defense attorney will have worked for the government either as a prosecutor or a public defender for some time before going into private practice.

Local advantage:

If at all possible the accused should hire a defense attorney who works in the courthouse where the case will be tried. The law is the same across the state but there are certain procedures that tend to vary from one courthouse to another. It is not rare for the district attorney in one county to deny pleas-bargaining for certain offenses while the DA in the neighboring county has no such policy. Due to exposure the defense attorney will know which prosecutor wait until right before trial to plead and those who negotiate well in advance. It is very much to the defendant’s advantage to deal with a criminal attorney in Timonium, MD that has local knowledge of the procedures and the people that will be involved.

Having a criminal attorney rather than a civil lawyer, having one that practices locally and one that is seasoned in defending those accused of a crime similar to the one you have been charged with are the important factors as you look for the right attorney.

If you are looking to engage the services of a criminal attorney in Timonium, MD you are invited to contact Maria K. Caruso Attorney at Law. Attorney Caruso maintains offices in Hartford and Baltimore counties which allow her to provide her clients with the effective representation.

 

 

Recent Posts

Categories

Archive

Related Posts