Being charged with a criminal offense is a serious matter and requires the help of an experienced criminal defense attorney. If convicted you could face jail time, a fine, loss of your job, license suspension, or other unforeseen consequences. Ultimately, your life could be drastically changed for the worse if you are convicted for a criminal offense.
Finding the Right Criminal Defense Attorney
It is important to find the right lawyer. An experienced criminal defense attorney is a must when charged with a crime. Ask friends, relatives and co-workers for the names of lawyers they have used. Private criminal defense lawyers generally practice on their own or in small partnerships, and in a specific geographic area. The typical private defense attorney has several years of experience working in government as a prosecutor or as a public defender.
Criminal Defense Attorneys at AMBN
The law offices of Anderson, Moore, Bailey and Nowell have two former Seventh Judicial Circuit (Spartanburg and Cherokee County) prosecutors with years of experience defending clients in the criminal justice system. We encourage you to contact us today if you are facing an arrest and criminal charge.
Initial Meetings with a Criminal Defense Attorney
Once you have chosen a lawyer, there are several things you need to consider in your first meeting.
Gather the basic facts about your case or legal matter so you can answer your lawyer’s preliminary questions. When providing information about your case, include names of the parties involved and dates the events occurred.
You may need to write down some basic questions for your lawyer before you meet. For example, you may want to know what investigation is required, what other documents possibly need to be obtained or what witnesses need to be interviewed.
It’s a good to discuss the whole case honestly with your lawyer, not just the parts of the legal matter that make you look good. You want to present the whole picture so that your lawyer can represent you effectively.
You may want to discuss with your attorney how long it will take to resolve the matter and his or her expectation for the outcome. Any resolution of your case should be made with advice from your lawyer.
Always discuss payment up front with your attorney, and what services will be included in that payment. This way both of you will know what to expect as you work together on your case. Remember that when you hire an attorney, you are also hiring the entire law office to work for you. The fee you pay will depend on the time it takes to prepare your legal matter and who works on the case.
If you or someone you know has been arrested and is in need of an experienced South Carolina criminal defense attorney, please contact the law offices of Anderson, Moore, Bailey and Nowell.
This blog is intended for general informational purposes only, and is not intended to serve as a substitute for talking to one of our lawyers here at Anderson, Moore Bailey and Nowell. In fact, the first step you can take towards resolving your problem is to have a face to face conversation with one of our lawyers. Our consultations are free, they are confidential, and we can almost always schedule you an appointment the same day we receive a call.