How to Hire a Criminal Lawyer: Conducting a Free Consultation

I offer free consultations with all of my clients. Many of these
free consultations take place on the phone. Others occur in my office.
Whether they are on the phone or in my office, my goal is to give my
client or potential client as much information as I can to answer as
many questions as I can.How should a potential client - you - use a
free consultation? First, you should use it to gain as much
information about your situation as you can. A lawyer should be
willing to spend as much time as you need to explain the general
process - how a DWI or criminal case or federal case or state case -
is handled in general.In addition, you should be prepared to give the
lawyer a few specific facts about your case so that lawyer can give
you some sense of how your case may go. Obviously during an initial
consultation, you can't expect a Raleigh lawyer to spend two hours
discussing the facts of your case. This is simply too detailed.
However, the lawyer you speak with should be able to give you some
specific advice about your specific situation.I am very surprised when
I receive a call and the person has talked to two or three lawyers,
but still doesn't understand very much about the process.I will
usually spend anywhere from 30 minutes to an hour explaining how cases
move through the system in North Carolina, and pointing out the good
parts and bad parts of my clients' case.If you call a lawyer, and the
lawyer promises you a result, run, do not walk, from that lawyer. Not
only is it unethical to promise a result, it is simply bad lawyering.
While a lawyer can sometimes say "I can probably do this for you" a
lawyer who says "I guarantee a result" is setting up for failure.
That's because nothing is guaranteed in criminal law.Finally, the
lawyer you reach should be happy to talk with you regardless of the
time or day. That's because people don't just get arrested Monday
through Friday, 9 to 5. People have trouble with the police whether
it's in the late night, weekends, or on holidays. A criminal lawyer
who is not interested in talking to you on the weekends, on
weeknights, or on holidays probably won't be that responsive should
you call for an emergency call on a weekend when police are knocking
on your door.A free consultation with a Raleigh criminal lawyer is an
excellent opportunity for you to evaluate the lawyer's tone, approach,
knowledge, and demeanor. Make the most of that opportunity.