Long Island has a long history, and is the home of more than 40% of the entire population of New York City. Some of these residents may find themselves facing criminal charges, and if you’re among them it’s important that you do all you can to defend yourself. The best way to do so is to find a good criminal defense attorney. However, due to the dense population within Suffolk County, you’ll have no shortage of options. It can be overwhelming trying to find the right defense attorney for your needs, but remembering a few basic points can help.
If you’re facing criminal charges in Suffolk County and need the help of a lawyer, keep these basic tips in mind to ensure you’re able to find the right one for your needs.
- Experience – This is the first thing most people will look at, and with good reason. The experience level of a law firm has a big impact on its ability to defend you properly. Look at the overall experience level of an entire firm instead of just a single lawyer, since that is a better indicator of their abilities in most cases.
- Practice Areas – Criminal law is a big area of the legal system. Try to identify lawyers that have experience handling the kind of charges you’re facing. For instance, certain attorneys may not have much experience defending clients charged with DWIs while some may not have worked much at defending white collar crimes. You need to find an attorney who has experience dealing with the crimes you’re charged with.
- Reputation – This may seem difficult to figure out, but in reality if you’ll just do a small bit of online research you should be able to quickly find out what past or current clients have to say about a lawyer. Trust in these word of mouth reviews and you’ll be able to relax knowing that you’ve found the right attorney for your needs.
- Gut Instinct – You can tell a lot about anyone based on your experiences with them, and that applies to lawyers too. After meeting with your attorney for your initial consultation you should have some idea as to what you think of them. If you like them and trust them, go with that instinct. If you have your doubts or don’t really like their attitude, don’t hesitate to consider looking elsewhere until you find the right one for your needs.
If you’ll keep these basic points in mind you should have no trouble finding the criminal attorney that is right for your situation.