Interviewer: How often are you able to improve someone’s lot in life if they hire you to defend their DUI?
Brian: It is hard to say if they do not hire me. There are other good attorneys out there. There are good private attorneys. There are good public defenders. There are some cases where people have chosen to represent themselves and they win in trial too. Still, it is extremely rare and not recommended. You need to know what to fight.
Interviewer: How often have you been able to get your clients positive results?
Brian: If it was a matter of them representing themselves or hiring me, I would be of benefit probably 95% of the time. There have been instances where I have taken the case over from a different private attorney, and I do wonders on the case.
I am dealing with one right now where the recommendation was to just take a plea agreement. I have the case, and I have gotten half the case dismissed so far. I am still working on trying to get the other half dismissed.
I also had a case where the private attorney was pushing plea agreements. I got the case. With what I argued, the case was dismissed.
Having the right attorney does matter, and there is a difference between a public defender and a private attorney. Likewise, often there can be a difference between a private attorney and another private attorney.
There are private attorneys who are a kind of Jack of all trades. Do you want a criminal lawyer? Do you want a DUI lawyer? Do you want someone to work on a will? Do you want a divorce lawyer? They are your guy, but that does not make them good at everything.
Interviewer: When interviewing attorneys, what are some signs to look for in an effort to hire the right person?
Brian: There are a lot of websites out there that rank attorneys. The problem with the ranking system is they can be manipulated. There are quite a few attorneys who I see rated at 100%, or rated 10 out of 10. However, they manipulated their way to that position.
A few come to my mind who are considered fantastic DUI lawyers, but they are able to promote themselves as being something they really are not. It’s important that people see what the attorney has done in the past
and how much they really focus on DUI. This is because DUI is so different than even criminal law; other criminal offenses, thefts, and murder.
It is a separate section of the law. Crimes are under Title 13. It is a big, thick section of the Arizona criminal law book. Vehicular offenses, including DUIs, are under Title 28. It is a totally separate area of the law.
If someone says half their practice is criminal law and half their practice is DUI, they are spending time away from DUI. They are focusing on other areas of law. That does not help clients. They are not able to keep on top of the latest changes and developments in DUI.
Someone like me, DUI is all I do. I am able to keep on top of changes in laws, as well as the latest updates. I focus all my attention on DUI representation. You are getting a better DUI attorney with me, rather than someone who dabbles in other areas of law. They simply cannot spend the time to focus and train themselves solely on DUI.
Interviewer: What is your opinion of attorneys who advertise cheap fees?
Brian: There is nothing bad about that. Sometimes, you get what you pay for. I am a very reasonably-priced attorney. I see no need to rip people off and take their money.
This is a desperate time for them. They are scared. What I have done is bifurcate out my representation. Ethically, an attorney is not supposed to take money for work they did not do.
There are plenty of attorneys. Some base their entire law firm and representation on this idea; “We are well advertised. You know us. You have seen all our billboards. Give us $10,000 because you think we are so good at what we do. Thank you for your $10,000. Take the plea agreement. We are not going to fight the case for you.”
There is a lot of that out there. I am a good attorney. I would go so far as to say, I am an excellent DUI attorney .However, I do not charge an arm and a leg. I am reasonably priced.
I am ethical in the way I charge for my representation. When you obtain me, you are paying me for the work I am doing, not because you see my name everywhere.
