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Facing criminal charges
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Chad Calabria
Senior Attorney
Death Penalty Certified
Focus: Fraud Charges, Sex Offenses, Drug and Serious Criminal Cases.
State and Federal

Gina Tennen
Executive Managing Attorney.
Focus: Serious Sex Crimes, Drug Crimes, Organized Crime, and White Collar Cases.
State and Federal

E. Thomas Dunn, Jr.
Certified Criminal Law Specialist and Appellate Specialist, Of Counsel

Louis Pilato
Senior Attorney, Of Counsel.
Focus: Sex Crimes, Drug Crimes, DUI's and all criminal cases

Featured Attorney

Attorney Carrie Jourdan was featured on 60 Minutes for her landmark case that resulted in the first ever overturn of a Death Penalty in Mississippi on the basis of DNA evidence.

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What You Need to Know Before Hiring An Attorney

There are thousands of law firms in the country that handle criminal defense. Selecting the right attorney for your case can be an overwhelming decision that will affect the rest of your life. We have seen disastrous consequences when people selected the wrong lawyer for their case.

Unfortunately, there are a lot of deceptive claims made by law firms. Unlike other businesses, you don't get a second chance if you select the wrong attorney for your case. Whether you retain the services of our firm or another, we strongly urge you to do your homework before hiring an attorney. Here are some helpful guidelines.

Make sure you speak to a real attorney.

When you call a law firm to discuss your case, make sure the person to whom you are speaking is a criminal attorney. If you are not speaking with an attorney, you are not getting legal advice. It is illegal for non-attorneys to dispense legal advice. Be wary of any firm that offers a free "consultation" and does not let you speak directly with an attorney.

Make sure you ask for the name of the person to whom you are speaking and ask if he/she is a criminal attorney. Remember that each attorney has a license number that you can use to check their record with their local bar association. Do not hesitate to ask for this number.

Meet your criminal defense team.

We are strong believers in team work. Attorneys are busy, and small law firms often juggle a heavy case load. The most successful results come from a group of people working together on investigation, trial preparation and client services. Here are some important considerations with team-based criminal defense.

• Who will handle your questions when your attorney is in court on another case?
• Does your law firm have the resources to compete against state or federal prosecutors?
• Do any of their attorneys have experience as prosecutors? Criminal defense attorneys who have experience as former prosecutors can use their inside knowledge to your advantage.

Make sure you have a complete team that can work intensively on your case. The prosecution has a team. So should you.

Understand the legal fees and how they will be used.

It is common in criminal defense to charge a fixed fee up front for a case. Make sure these fees actually go to funding your defense and getting you the best possible result. Beware of these business practices:

• Some firms take your money and then subcontract most or all of the actual legal work for a small fraction of what you paid! Make sure the firm you hired is actually the firm that will handle your case.
• Whether or not your case goes to trial, thorough trial preparation is a key element of an effective defense. Make sure your legal fees include trial time, and make sure your law firm will spend the time needed to get your trial-ready. Criminal lawyers are generally required to represent you in court, and you don't want a lawyer to plea your rights away just to avoid the expense of spending time in court.
• Make sure your law firm does not spend your legal fees up front rather than as they are earned. Otherwise, there will be no money left to finish your case in the event that your lawyer is unable to do so. Your law firm or attorney should reserve unearned fees. Be sure you demand a regular accounting of these fees.

Check for bar complaints.

One of the easiest things to do is check the credentials of your attorney with the state bar. Ask your attorney to provide you with a link to his or her profile on the state bar web site. Pay attention to complaints and disciplinary action!

Check the track record of results.

Ask for real case results from your law firm. After all, isn't a successful result the reason you are hiring a lawyer in the first place? Lawyers with proven track records not only generate better results in court, their reputation helps keep cases out of court in the first place. Ask your criminal lawyer how many cases like yours they have handled.

Ask for relevant trial experience.

Every criminal case is different. Make sure the law firm you hire has specific experience in cases like yours. Specialists are always a better bet than general practitioners. In the same way that you would not ask your family doctor to perform brain surgery, you would not want an attorney who dabbles in many different areas of law to handle your specific criminal case. In criminal defense, experience counts!