Legal Guide

8 Reasons Why you need a Criminal Lawyer

What is Criminal Law and a Criminal Lawyer?

Criminal Law

Criminal laws are the rules and procedures that govern criminal offenses. They tend to define what criminal offenses are what should be done in case an offense has been committed. These offenses include behaviors that are publicly harmful or may impact the safety of oneself or others. Criminal laws define immoral behaviors or practices and the punishments or penalties that may follow such violations. Some examples of criminal offenses are murder, theft, arson, money laundering, drug dealing, scams, terrorism or any behviours that may disrupt public or moral behaviors. Anything that may harm an individual, public welfare or property that is defined in the criminal legislation as a crime may be handled under the criminal law. Criminal laws have a dual purpose

  1. To maintain law and order by controlling citizens from any actions that are harmful towards the society or an individual
  2. To ensure that those who commit violations of those laws are given well deserved punishments.

Criminal Lawyer

A criminal lawyer is an experienced professional that handles criminal cases. These cases can be from both the defense sides or the prosecuting sides. The type of lawyer may heavily depend upon the case and their client. Criminal lawyers tend to have a great deal of experience in handling criminal cases in court. They are impartial professionals that ensure that their clients get their rights and fair treatment from law. The job of a criminal lawyer  is nothing like what is depicted in television dramas. Things are far more complicated in court compared to what we know. This is why hiring a criminal lawyer for criminal cases plays in your own benefit considering they have ample experience in dealing with these complicated matters.

Tasks of a criminal lawyer

Criminal lawyers tend to have a wide variety of tasks that can not be easily described. Their profession is generally far more complicated and vast. Therefore their tasks are quite tiring and hard to deal with as well.The tasks of criminal lawyers may also depend upon the cases that they are handling. The requirements are likely to increase depending upon different cases. 

There are different types of solicitors that work as criminal lawyers and deal with the issues of criminal offenses. These may include:

1. Criminal Defense Solicitor: These solicitors help their clients in upholding their legal rights before the court of law. They deal with clients that may be suspected for or have been charged for a certain crime. They ensure that their client is able to get fair representation before the court of law. Their duties may be vast but they make sure of the following conditions.

  • Their client has legal representation throughout the case
  • They thoroughly go over the process and stage of the procession
  • They present the case for their client in court
  • They ensure that the relevant material is reviewed and thoroughly investigated.
  • They keep in contact with the clients and update them frequently regarding any developments within the case
  • They deal with police reports, witnesses or any other reports that are relevant to the case.
  • The research the case and ensure that they have proper strategies to handle and present the case in court
  • They manage the documents of the case and also draft any legal documents that may be required for the case.
  • They deal with the plea bargains with the prosecutor or defendant side

2. Criminal Duty Solicitor: Criminal Duty Solicitors are representatives for individuals accused of any crime but are unable to access a solicitor for themselve. These solicitors are paid by the Legal Services Commision and therefore they are free of charge. They handle the cases for people who are unable to handle them and cannot access solicitors either. Since they work for a panel of solicitors that are not approached by the police or court, they may not appear if you have already appointed a solicitor. The main tasks include:

  • They make sure that the legal rights of the defendant are ensured even if they are unable to pay for a solicitor
  • They guide the defendants through the process of their course and what decisions they might need to take
  • They may discuss the evidence with the defendant and present the possible course of actions
  • They may challenge the evidence or contact the witnesses on behalf of the defendant.
  • They ensure that everyone has a fair share of representation in court whether or not they can access it by themselves.

3. Criminal Prosecution: A criminal prosecutor is a prosecutor that represents your case in court against the defendant's side. They tend to deal with the prosecution of the accused. Most of the time they are employed by the government. This is an effort to ensure that the defendant if proven guilty may be responsible for the consequences of his or her actions.

The tasks of prosecution may include the following responsibilities

  • They may work over with the police investigation and follow up on the progression of the case.
  • They may collaborate with the teams that are working on the case and handle the case with the administrative staff.
  • They may cooperate with the law enforcement or any other criminal justice agencies that may be responsible for looking into the case.
  • They may cooperate with the probation services and other investigators
  • They ensure that the offenses of the defendant don’t go unpunished.
  • They fight the case against the Criminal Defense Solicitors in court
  • They present and advise the court against the defendant’s actions as well as their consequences.

8 Reasons why you need a Criminal Lawyer

Hiring an expert criminal lawyer is for your own benefit. These are experts who spend their days in and out of court. They have a better understanding of the matters that are handled in court. Their experience gives them a lot of edge over the case. Here are the 8 main reasons why you should definitely go for a criminal lawyer to deal with your case.

1. They can save you from the stress of handling a case

Criminal lawyers know how to handle the complex issues related to criminal cases in court. They have ample knowledge to be able to handle the course without even having your help. This means they can save you from a lot of stress that comes with a criminal case procession.

2. They can support you in interviews

You are more likely to make mistakes that may affect your case especially during interviews that are conducted by the police. They may twist words in ways that may push you into saying the wrong things that can negatively impact your case. Criminal lawyers can stay by your side during the investigation and ensure that you know what your rights are and that you don’t end up making the wrong statements.

3. Criminal lawyers are experts

Criminal lawyers are experts in their field. They have more knowledge in dealing with a case compared to you and naturally they can handle the case better than you. They know how to handle evidence and how to make sure that the evidence is used properly enough in your benefit. They are good at handling information and witnesses that are related to the case.

4. They can help with bail

Criminal lawyers can handle your bail options. They are already familiar with the process and may bail you out faster than you can do for yourself. Naturally, you may not wish to stay in jail waiting for your hearing and having someone save you out from that situation even if temporarily can be quite helpful.

5. They handle your case strategically

Criminal lawyers are professionals and naturally they have a knack for finding problems and dealing with them strategically. Many times they are able to find problems with the witnesses or testimonies or evidence in general that you may not be able to find on your own.They know how to use those problems strategically in favor of your case.

6. They can identify weaknesses of your opponent

Having been through many cases, criminal lawyers are easily able to see through the weaknesses of your opponent’s side. From thereon they can suggest measures to deal with those weaknesses accordingly. They tend to have a better idea of which type of evidence may or may not be admissible into court and can also handle public interest submissions for your case.

7. They know when you should plead guilty

Having a lot of experience they are naturally able to predict the course of progression of your case in court. They can further suggest to you regarding whether or not you should plead guilty. They are objective oriented and can easily change their main objectives depending upon whether or not there’s hope for you to win the case.

8. They can help you in reducing penalties or sentences

Criminal lawyers have a clear idea of your case and where it may progress. They might already know that your sentence is unavoidable so they may shift their case towards going for plea bargains or any sentence reduction programs depending upon your circumstances. On your own, you may not be able to handle a losing case so having a professional to at least reduce your punishment can be quite helpful.

Conclusion

Criminal law is present to protect the rights of people and to ensure that those who violate it are punished. Criminal lawyers are tasked with handling criminal cases in courts to ensure that the outcomes or punishments are fair and just. Having a criminal lawyer to help you handle the case can be really helpful especially if you are not familiar with how a court works. This can increase your chances of having more success with your case.

Get legal help with a criminal case by contacting a Long Beah Criminal Lawyer today.


More to Read: