Blog: Lawyer’s Insight on legal
matters
- Questions on Representation
-
"Lawyer's Insight' is a periodic blog by Mr. Samore on
current legal issues that informs readers how current,
legal events influence Americans' lives. If you would like
to ask Mr. Samore to address a particular concern which
you may have, simply send an email to the address at left
with subject "Questions for Lawyer's Insight."
Click on the links below to quickly reach a particular
topic, or just scroll down to read what is of interest.
Other sources of information from Mr. Samore are on
the Common Questions and About Us pages of this
website.
If you don’t see a link to a topic of interest, check the other Lawyer’s Insight pages.
Questions on Representation
•
Are Public Defenders real lawyers?
•
Am I risking anything if I try to represent myself for a while?
•
Why do you lawyers do all this plea bargaining?
Are Public Defenders real lawyers?
July 15, 2013
I WANT TO HIRE A PRIVATE ATTORNEY, BECAUSE I WAS GIVEN A PUBLIC DEFENDER. MY FAMILY ASKED ME IF
PUBLIC DEFENDERS ARE REAL LAWYERS?
You bet they are, and they are often very good ones.
Public defenders undergo the same education and
training as any other licensed attorney and often dedicate
their careers to representing the poor.
While being able to afford a private attorney may bring to
you certain advantages, never feel that you are "stuck"
with a Public Defender. Despite heavy caseloads, they
work hard, are skilled, and many of us private attorneys
occasionally consult with them because they are so good
at what they do. They deserve our respect.
We attorneys who are privately-hired are certainly capable and always eager to help you, but to criticize any other attorney is,
in my judgment, cowardly and devious. No private attorney should ever advance his or her position by criticizing Public
Defenders. These are good people and darned good lawyers.
Am I risking anything if I try to represent myself for a while?
July 15, 2013
I JUST GOT SERVED IN A FAMILY LAW CASE. AM I RISKING ANYTHING IF I TRY TO REPRESENT MYSELF FOR
AWHILE, AND JUST DECIDE LATER IF I NEED AN ATTORNEY?
This approach tends to be a big mistake. If the other side has an attorney to protect them and assert every argument in their
favor, by the time you get to our office (or the office of another reputable attorney), you are usually so far behind in the race for
justice that the case may be lost. If the case is not already lost, it will take a whole lot more attorney work to catch you up and
give you a chance. We have, indeed, won those cases, but they are very difficult and more expensive than if the client had come
to us right away.
Dare you risk the kind of result with which your little girl will live for the rest of her childhood? Don't you want to be a big part
of her childhood and protect her from those who might mess her healthy values forever? That is just one example, because,
once the terms for time-sharing or child support are locked in, even on a temporary basis, it is very difficult to change those
terms.
Schedule an appointment at our office, even if you can only afford to buy an hour of my time, to let us alert you to the pitfalls
and dangers on your road to justice. You can the decide if you want to hire a lawyer to help you through this difficult time of
your life.
other common questions about defense
Why do you lawyers do all this plea bargaining?
July 15, 2013
The truth is that, without plea bargaining, our whole criminal justice system would collapse. That is one of many reasons that
you want a seasoned attorney who not only has the confidence of record being an experienced trial lawyer but also knows the
law well enough to help fashion, when necessary, a reasonable option through a reduced offense level plea that you or your
loved one may be willing to consider.
In state court, less than ten percent of the cases actually
go to trial, and, in federal court, the percentage is barely
two percent. This fact may surprise you, but there are
some reasons why it is so. When this country's adversary
system has (I think unfortunately) become one where
increasingly prosecutors can gain more recognition and
financial support by emphasizing the filing of as many
criminal charges as one reasonably can. By doing this,
they get more fancy offices, assistant prosecutors, more
government money comes their way and having their
name in the paper may elevate them to higher offices. They do not see the benefit in showing sensible restraint by, for
example, attempting to resolve disputes without filing criminal charges.
As well as locking into prisons a higher percentage of our citizens than any other country in the world, American prosecutors
also file far more criminal cases per capita than any other country in the world. As a result, even if we wanted to demand a
trial on every case filed, they could not be conducted because the court simply lacks resources. At the same time, the use of
plea bargains can often be a fair way to resolve any dispute, even ones that involve criminal allegations. It is also true that
many criminal prosecutions have such strong evidence against the defendant that it is better to authorize us to try and work
toward a favorable plea agreement, rather than go through an unnecessary trial and be hammered.
Whether a plea bargain is something you or your loved one might ever consider is one of the important things we can discuss
in detail when we are working for you. Our first goal is dismissal of the charges against you, number two is sending you home,
and number three is making sure that you can still have a good job and good reputation.
Samore Law • 505-244-0450
Practicing in Albuquerque and across the State of New Mexico
Mailing address: PO Box 1993, Albuquerque, NM 87103
Street address: 300 Central Ave SW, Suite 2500W, Albuquerque
Blog: Lawyer’s Insight on legal
matters
- Questions on Representation -
"Lawyer's Insight' is a periodic blog by Mr. Samore
on current legal issues that informs readers how
current, legal events influence
Americans' lives. If you would
like to ask Mr. Samore to
address a particular concern
which you may have, simply
send an email to the address at
left with subject "Questions for
Lawyer's Insight."
Click on the links below to
quickly reach a particular topic, or just scroll down
to read what is of interest. Other sources of
information from Mr. Samore are on the Common
Questions and About Us pages of this website.
Samore Law
505-244-0450
Practicing in Albuquerque and
across the state of New Mexico
Mailing address: PO Box 1993, Albuquerque, NM 87103
Street address: 300 Central Ave SW, Suite 2500W, Albuquerque
If you don’t see a link to a topic of interest, check the
other Lawyer’s Insight pages.
Questions on Representation
•
Are Public Defenders real lawyers?
•
Am I risking anything if I try to represent myself for
a while?
•
Why do you lawyers do all this plea bargaining?
Are Public Defenders real lawyers?
July 15, 2013
I WANT TO HIRE A PRIVATE ATTORNEY,
BECAUSE I WAS GIVEN A PUBLIC DEFENDER.
MY FAMILY ASKED ME IF PUBLIC DEFENDERS
ARE REAL LAWYERS?
You bet they are, and
they are often very
good ones. Public
defenders undergo the
same education and
training as any other licensed attorney and often
dedicate their careers to representing the poor.
While being able to afford a private attorney may
bring to you certain advantages, never feel that you
are "stuck" with a Public Defender. Despite heavy
caseloads, they work hard, are skilled, and many of
us private attorneys occasionally consult with them
because they are so good at what they do. They
deserve our respect.
We attorneys who are privately-hired are certainly
capable and always eager to help you, but to criticize
any other attorney is, in my judgment, cowardly and
devious. No private attorney should ever advance his
or her position by criticizing Public Defenders. These
are good people and darned good lawyers.
Am I risking anything if I try to represent myself for a
while?
July 15, 2013
I JUST GOT SERVED IN A FAMILY LAW CASE. AM
I RISKING ANYTHING IF I TRY TO REPRESENT
MYSELF FOR AWHILE, AND JUST DECIDE LATER
IF I NEED AN ATTORNEY?
This approach tends to be a big mistake. If the other
side has an attorney to protect them and assert every
argument in their favor, by the time you get to our
office (or the office of another reputable attorney),
you are usually so far behind in the race for justice
that the case may be lost. If the case is not already
lost, it will take a whole lot more attorney work to
catch you up and give you a chance. We have,
indeed, won those cases, but they are very difficult
and more expensive than if the client had come to us
right away.
Dare you risk the kind of result with which your little
girl will live for the rest of her childhood? Don't you
want to be a big part of her childhood and protect her
from those who might mess her healthy values
forever? That is just one example, because, once the
terms for time-sharing or child support are locked in,
even on a temporary basis, it is very difficult to
change those terms.
Schedule an appointment at our office, even if you
can only afford to buy an hour of my time, to let us
alert you to the pitfalls and dangers on your road to
justice. You can the decide if you want to hire a
lawyer to help you through this difficult time of your
life.
other common questions about defense
Why do you lawyers do all this plea bargaining?
July 15, 2013
The truth is that, without plea bargaining, our whole
criminal justice system would collapse. That is one of
many reasons that you want a seasoned attorney who
not only has the confidence of record being an
experienced trial lawyer but also knows the law well
enough to help fashion, when necessary, a reasonable
option through a reduced offense level plea that you
or your loved one may be willing to consider.
In state court, less than
ten percent of the cases
actually go to trial, and,
in federal court, the
percentage is barely
two percent. This fact may surprise you, but there
are some reasons why it is so. When this country's
adversary system has (I think unfortunately) become
one where increasingly prosecutors can gain more
recognition and financial support by emphasizing the
filing of as many criminal charges as one reasonably
can. By doing this, they get more fancy offices,
assistant prosecutors, more government money
comes their way and having their name in the paper
may elevate them to higher offices. They do not see
the benefit in showing sensible restraint by, for
example, attempting to resolve disputes without
filing criminal charges.
As well as locking into prisons a higher percentage of
our citizens than any other country in the world,
American prosecutors also file far more criminal
cases per capita than any other country in the world.
As a result, even if we wanted to demand a trial on
every case filed, they could not be conducted because
the court simply lacks resources. At the same time,
the use of plea bargains can often be a fair way to
resolve any dispute, even ones that involve criminal
allegations. It is also true that many criminal
prosecutions have such strong evidence against the
defendant that it is better to authorize us to try and
work toward a favorable plea agreement, rather than
go through an unnecessary trial and be hammered.
Whether a plea bargain is something you or your
loved one might ever consider is one of the important
things we can discuss in detail when we are working
for you. Our first goal is dismissal of the charges
against you, number two is sending you home, and
number three is making sure that you can still have a
good job and good reputation.