The short answer is it largely depends upon the circumstances and the level of penalty you face. Drink driving (and drug driving) can attract a range of penalties starting at 12 months ban but more serious cases can see that ban increased significantly to several years. These offences can also attract community orders and terms of imprisonment, so we would recommend you speak to us for some free advice about whether you need help with your case. Also, if you’re unsure between the difference between solicitors and barristers, our motor law expert Neil Sargeant has written an article on this very topic, please click here to read the full article.
The law and the proceedings that arise from its implementation are vast, confusing and complex. It is an odd period we currently live in where the value of a solicitor, barrister or other type of lawyer is not widely known but a professional in this field can help you navigate these proceedings and hopefully come out with a good result. You should always bear in mind that even though road traffic cases are often considered to be minor, you (an individual) are still being Prosecuted by the state (a huge, governing body). You are immediately at a disadvantage in this situation because the Prosecution/The State, hold all the cards and have all the information. Instructing a representative can help put you on a level playing field to ensure equality of arms and will almost certainly make it more likely that you receive effective justice. So many motorists do not seek advice after they have already been convicted and this is hugely frustrating as there are often things we could have done to help prior to the case progressing so far.
Motoring Defence Solicitors do not accept cases that are legally aided so if you wish to instruct us you will either need to pay privately or fund the case via a policy of insurance. The reason for this is simple: we want to provide you with the best level of representation. As a rule, legal aid is unavailable for those charged with road traffic offences unless two strict tests are passed. The first is the “means test” where a defendant applying for legal aid must show they earn the minimum in terms of income. Even if you pass that test, you must also pass “the interests of justice” test. You would likely not pass this test unless you were at risk of prison.
Even if your case did qualify for legal aid, we would not accept instructions as legal aid is simply too restrictive. To effectively represent you we must be able to prepare your case effectively and legal aid does not provide funding for so many aspects that are required in defending a road traffic case. For example, if you were charged with drink driving and were challenging the reliability of the blood sample, you would need an expert witness who is suitably qualified and experienced enough to do that. These experts are extremely limited and none that we know of accept cases that are legally aided due to how little the experts would be paid.
We appreciate this may be hugely frustrated but please remember that there are other funding options available. With privately funded cases we can often arrange flexible payment agreements and many motorists have insurance policies that can cover the costs, so we would recommend you contact us to discuss this in more detail. We also have a dedicated page on our fees, please click here.
We are often asked this question as many motorists assume that there is no defence. Unlike general crime (theft, rape etc) there can be what is called a “statutory defence”. This is a defence that is written somewhere in amongst the vast volumes of text that contain the laws that govern us all. Somewhere in a book, it will say that “you are not guilty of theft if xxxxx” (or something to that effect). The difference with road traffic cases such as drink and drug driving is that there are very few “statutory defences” but instead, there are a range of technical defences. The term “technical defence” or “technicality” itself often inspires an eye roll or disbelief but we believe this is due to a lack of understanding. For example, the law says that if you drive whilst over the limit of alcohol then you are guilty of a criminal offence and that is right. If, however, the evidence that you were over the limit is a blood sample, and we find that the blood sample was contaminated or flawed in some way- how or why should that person still be convicted of a criminal offence? Whenever a person is prosecuted, it is “the State” prosecuting an individual. The state is the huge governing body of our country with a frightening level of power and influence over our lives. If they want to prosecute someone and potentially deny that person of their liberty, they must ensure they are doing so correctly and they must ensure that any conviction is “safe”. Regardless of your feelings towards terminology like “technicality”, if it is your life that is at risk of being turned upside down, would you be happy possibly being convicted as a result of “dodgy” evidence?
We are often asked what the difference is between various legal professionals and there are so many titles now that people are understandably confused.
To put it in the simplest of terms:
Your case/defence would usually be prepared in an office by a solicitor. In today’s modern world however, there are various other professionals that perform similar duties to that of a solicitor and you will often find that Legal Executives, Caseworkers or Paralegals are responsible for preparing your defence. The title here usually represents the individual’s qualification and the route they took to obtain that qualification. For example, a solicitor and a legal executive perform largely the same role. The main difference is how that person became qualified. A solicitor would do a degree, then a course called the Legal Practice Course (LPC) before having to secure a 2-year training contract before being a “qualified solicitor”. By contract, a Legal Executive may have taken a more work-based approach to their studies. Many Legal Executives work in the legal profession as they obtain qualifications and are therefore learning the skills that the LPC or training contract may bestow upon a potential solicitor. Paralegals and caseworkers are usually non-qualified professionals. The main thing to remember with who you instruct is their experience in the area you want to instruct them in. You would not want to ask a qualified mechanic to conduct brain surgery so why ask a qualified solicitor (who may work in Employment) to represent you above a non-qualified caseworker who has years of relevant experience?
A barrister, solicitor-advocate or legal executive advocate are the people who represent you in the courtroom and these are the professionals who are best-equipped to represent you. The skills required to effectively prepare a case are vastly different to those needed in a court advocate and that is why it is almost always beneficial that you have one person dedicated to the preparation of your case, and one person dedicated to advancing and arguing it in court.
Those who prepare your case must be thorough, meticulous, understanding, empathetic and analytical whereas your advocate needs to be a quick thinker on his feet, adaptable to fluid circumstances and be a fierce advocate to successful argue your case. It is worth remembering that our trial system is known as taking an “adversarial” format. This means you have one advocate against another and your advocate needs to be prepared to go into court and argue your case to the best of his ability.
The term “lawyer” is more general and can encompass all the roles/professions mentioned above.
Instructing a firm of specialist Motoring Solicitors is a decision not to be be taken lightly. When you instruct a lawyer, you are putting your trust in them and their ability to prepare your case to ensure you get the best representation. The “best representation” is that which keeps you fully informed and makes you aware of all the potential consequences to your decisions and actions throughout the case. Decisions and actions have consequences and some of them can be life-changing so if you are instructing a representative, you must have a degree of trust in them. Your representative is going to be advising you on evidence in your case and some of this may be evidence/advice that you don’t particularly like. In these situations, you need to be comfortable in accepting that even though you do not like the advice, you trust that it is still the best advice under the circumstances. Sometimes pleading guilty to an offence can be better in the long run but this is not always easy to accept. He worst situation you can be in is having paid a representative to help you and not trusting that they are acting in your best interests.
The best way to put your mind at rest about any representative is by speaking to them as only then will you get an idea about their skills and experience. Everybody has different personalities and you need to have a good fit with your representative.
So many firms claim to specialise in road traffic law but when you scratch beneath the service it becomes apparent that they only really represent motorists who are pleading guilty to an offence and, as explained further up the page, representation is not always needed. If you want to defend a case such as drink driving, we would recommend asking specific and direct questions about that specific person’s experience. How many cases do they deal with? How many of their clients charged with drink driving are found not guilty? You claim to have a great success rate but is this your success rate or that of a colleague’s? These are all questions that are worth asking.
Officers only need “reasonable suspicion” that a motorist may be over the legal limit in order to require breath sample. If an officer forms the opinion that your driving is erratic or that you are going too fast they can use this to justify a requirement for a breath sample and subsequent arrest.
The best way to put your mind at rest about any representative is by speaking to them as only then will you get an idea about their skills and experience. Everybody has different personalities and you need to have a good fit with your representative.
So many firms claim to specialise in road traffic law but when you scratch beneath the service it becomes apparent that they only really represent motorists who are pleading guilty to an offence and, as explained further up the page, representation is not always needed. If you want to defend a case such as drink driving, we would recommend asking specific and direct questions about that specific person’s experience. How many cases do they deal with? How many of their clients charged with drink driving are found not guilty? You claim to have a great success rate but is this your success rate or that of a colleague’s? These are all questions that are worth asking.
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