Minor Drivers and Injuries Resulting from DUIs

Interviewer: What if that person is a minor? Does that make a difference?

Arizona Will Try Cases Involving Minors in Juvenile Court

Brian Sloan: It can make a difference. We do have juvenile courts. A lot of times if the injury is bad enough, the prosecutors will attempt to have the minor charged as an adult. Minors are treated differently in the system.

One, they’re treated in the juvenile system; two, they’re treated different in that they’re not supposed to have any alcohol in their system, so they’re not necessarily held to the adult standards of having a blood alcohol level of .08.

A juvenile with a DUI charge is going to have to deal with license suspension issues different than an adult with a DUI charge. A juvenile with a DUI charge will lose their license for, I believe, at least two years if they are convicted.

If the Client Is Only 21 or 22 Years Old and His or Her Parents Are Paying the Attorney, Does the Attorney Represent the Interests of the Parents or the Young Adult?

Interviewer: Let’s say there’s a young college student, 21, 22 gets a DWI or DUI, would you be willing to work with their parents if their parents are insistent on working on the case with you?

Brian Sloan: I work with a lot of ASU students. There are many youths that make mistakes, when they are only college-age. They’re out experimenting, they’re away from their parents and they’re away from their home state. Sometimes they get in trouble, they make a mistake, they drive drunk, or they drive after using prescription medications or illegal substances. Parents want to be involved and they want to help their children out because they are worried about their children.

If I am hired to represent someone, that is the person that I’m representing, regardless of who is paying me. Sometimes there will be a situation where the parents are paying my bills but I’m representing their son.

Young Adults Are Not Required to Divulge Details of the Arrest to Their Parents

My loyalty is to their son. If the son decides that he doesn’t want his parents to be involved or to know what’s in the police report or what’s going on with the case, my obligation is to represent the son and abide by his wishes.

There are some parents that want to get involved. It is really up to my client to decide what their level of involvement is. I have no problem talking to parents if that’s okay with my client.

The Attorney’s Loyalty Is Always to His or Her Client, Not to the Person Paying the Fee

If my client gives me permission to disclose things to the parents, that’s perfectly fine. I make it perfectly clear to the parents or whoever is paying the bills that my loyalty is towards the client, regardless if they are the ones that are paying the bills.

Most of the time they can be very helpful and it is nice to see parents that care about their children and want to see what’s best for them. I have seen some parents that in my opinion overreact and want to basically take their children out of school and bring them back to their home state when it really isn’t necessary.

I’ve seen that happen a few times. People make mistakes. They can overcome that. This doesn’t need to destroy their lives. Very rarely does anything happen that would destroy their lives until you’re talking about multiple felonies.

It Is Important to Remember That with the Right Legal Representation, the Consequences of a DUI Conviction Can Be Overcome and One’s Life Need Not Dramatically Change        

People will overcome a DUI charge. People will overcome a DUI conviction. Their lives are not ruined. Their lives do not need to dramatically change. It’s unfortunate that some parents feel that way. It’s really unfortunate that some lawyers try to put that fear in them, that if you don’t hire me, your life is over, because it’s just not true.

By Brian Douglas Sloan

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Brian Douglas Sloan

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Why Attorney Brian Douglas Sloan?
Phoenix DUI Lawyer

Why Attorney Brian Douglas Sloan?

18+

18+ Years SOLELY Focused on DUI Defense

4,100+

4,100+ DUIs Successfully Defended

Top Accolades

  • Only DUI "Power Lawyer" in the Nation Featured in USA Today, 2022

  • Top 10 in Arizona

Top 1%

Top One Percent in the Nation

Superb 10/10

AVVO.com

Preeminent
4.9 / 5.0

Martindale-hubble

“I am one of only a handful of Phoenix DUI Lawyers that focuses solely on DUI Defense representation.”

I have spent my entire career focused on DUI Defense representation, having personally defended more than 4,100+ DUI clients in the past 18+ years.

If you’re looking for a divorce attorney, tax attorney, or civil attorney, then I can comfortably say: "I’m not the one for you".

Coming up with traditional, as well as outside-the-box motions and defenses for my clients, often with good results, is the hallmark of my practice.

Lawyers that say they are "aggressive", or "will fight for you", are a dime a dozen. They use these phrases because that is what they think people want to hear. The truth of the matter is, being "aggressive" rarely gets the client anywhere in these court systems. Being "aggressive" isn’t the same as being good, and is often used to put on a show for a client to hide the fact that they aren’t doing anything meaningful for the client.

The same is true for the lawyers that claim to do DUI Defense... and Criminal Cases..., and Accident cases..., and Divorces. A Jack-of-all-Trades is a master of none. By handling all different sorts of cases, they take away from their ability to truly focus on DUIs, and keep up to date on the latest changes in DUI Defense Representation.

What I offer is intelligent, quality DUI Defense, at an exceptional price.

I am one of only a handful of Arizona DUI Lawyers that focuses solely on DUI Defense representation.

I have not only taught other lawyers how to do DUI Defense Representation at statewide seminars, but I produce DUI Legal Guides used by defense lawyers across Arizona.

I am one of the most award-winning DUI Defense Lawyers in Arizona; have been recognized nationally, including in a 2022 issue of USA Today; and there are only a few lawyers in Arizona who have personally defended more DUI cases than I have. I am also one of the most reasonably-priced DUI Lawyers, as I pride myself on charging a Flat Rate only for the legal services you need, and not for the legal services you don’t.

I am also the lawyer who people call once they realize that their original lawyer screwed something up, gave them false hope or false promises, or simply just took their money and didn’t do much on the case. You would be surprised at how often this happens.

Save yourself the trouble of hiring the wrong lawyer, and hire the right DUI Defense Lawyer from the start.

You can reach me on my personal cell phone: 480-720-7839.

Let me know if you have any questions!


Brian Douglas Sloan

DUI Attorney

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Email address:
Sloan@ArizDUI.com
2 N. Central Ave Suite 1929
Phoenix, AZ 85004