The "Do I Really Need My Own Lawyer for an Appearance Ticket" Quiz

By: James Shalley

People often ponder the "need" to bother hiring their own lawyers when they first receive Desk Appearance Tickets for a variety of reasons, chief among them frequently that the police tell them not to bother with lawyers.

Directions: In each of the following pairs of statements, choose the one ( A or B ) that best describes what you would want when you are charged with a crime and need to appear in Criminal Court.
Choice of Lawyer

QUESTION 1

A. I want to be represented by a lawyer randomly chosen for me who might have a lot of experience or very little experience. I'll take my chances.

B. I want to choose the lawyer who will represent me so that I can be personally satisfied up front that I am getting legal advice from a lawyer who has the qualities and legal experience that I want.

QUESTION 2

A. I want to speak to my lawyer for the first time on the same day that I have to appear in Court for the first time.

B. I want to talk to my lawyer as soon as possible so that I can try to understand my situation and have my mind put fully at ease.

QUESTION 3

A. I want to have my meeting with my lawyer over the course of a few minutes in a public courthouse hallway while the other people my lawyer will be interviewing after me linger a short distance away from us.

B. I want to be able to sit down, if I like, and have a civilized discussion with my lawyer in private and not under the watchful eyes and ears of whoever happens to be roaming the Criminal Court hallway.

QUESTION 4

A. I want to make sure that I can sit in Court for a while waiting for the lawyer to be chosen for me and waiting for my case to be called into the calendar for my appearance. I don't mind waiting around for hours on end, and potentially being the last case called of the day.

B. I want to be appear early with my lawyer and be called right away so that I can reasonably expect to be done by 10am and get back to work or school.

QUESTION 5

A. I prefer to show up and hope for the best. What could possibly go wrong for me in New York City Criminal Court?

B. I prefer to know as much as possible about what to expect in Criminal Court long before it happens, so that I don't have to worry so much.

RESULTS

Odds are you answered B to each question. If so, then you ought to consider engaging a lawyer. Give me a call at 347-612-9830.

James Shalley has been practicing criminal defense in New York for more than 30 years.