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Everything You Wanted to Know About Criminal Lawyers, Part 1
If you’d like to know more about criminal attorneys, we understand, especially if you’re going to be needing legal advice from one. It’s normal to want to learn about criminal defense attorneys, the types of jobs criminal lawyers do, as well as how they handle cases, how they communicate with clients, etc.
It would probably be wise to inquire about the main differences between criminal and civil courts while you’re at it. But, that’s a story for another time. For now, we’d like to focus on informing you about the minutiae of the job of criminal lawyers. So, if you think you’ll need advice from a criminal defense lawyer in San Diego, read this first.
What constitutes “confidential information”?
Individuals who haven’t got an in-depth knowledge of the job of a criminal defense lawyer are bound to have a couple of questions, especially if they’re going to be needing their services. The first question to pop up usually has to do with confidential information.
And that’s completely normal. You need to know what information you can share with your lawyer, without fear that information might come back at you like a boomerang and cause harm to your case.
You can rest easy, though, as basically anything you say to your lawyer is confidential and “just between the two of you”. This legal principle is called “attorney-client privilege”, and it is, perhaps, the most fundamental right of every defendant within the California Department of Justice legal system. So, almost everything you discuss with your attorney is confidential.
Are there any exceptions to attorney-client privilege?
As you might have noticed, we said “almost everything”. There are several exceptions in which the attorney is allowed to divulge confidential information:
- In order to prevent an individual’s death
- To stop you from committing another crime
- To get legal counsel from another attorney
- In order to protect themselves against legal accusations of wrongful conduct
Can an attorney defend a guilty individual?
This question almost directly stems from people wanting to know more about confidentiality of information shared between clients and lawyers. If you’re aware that you’re guilty of a crime, but would still like adequate legal representation, you should definitely inquire into this matter.
The answer is yes, criminal defense attorneys definitely can defend an individual they know is guilty of committing a crime. There is no law against it. However, a private criminal attorney can choose not to defend the guilty individual, as they are not legally bound to defend everyone looking for legal representation.
And, don’t be afraid of your lawyer potentially knowing you were guilty of a crime. It is their duty to work completely diligently on each case and in their client’s favor. A criminal defense lawyer is there to represent your interests, and nobody else’s.
What do criminal attorneys do?
It does seem a bit odd for this question to be third on our list, but experience tells us that people looking for legal counsel are primarily concerned about confidentiality and all that stems from it. Familiarizing themselves with the job the lawyer is going to do is further down their list of interests.
However, in order to know how the entire process of the trial is going to transpire, and to be aware of everything the criminal lawyer’s doing for you and your case, and what you’re paying the attorney for, you have to know just what it is they do:
- Discuss your case and potential consequences
- Propose a legal plan of action for your case
- Interview eyewitnesses and check their accounts
- Select which witnesses to invite to the trial
- Discuss your case with the prosecution and the judge
- Compile evidence that works for you
- Perform detailed legal research about similar cases
- Try to dismiss the case before it even goes to court
- Represent your case in the court of law
- If need be, try to secure a favorable plea bargain
As you can see, there’s a lot to a criminal attorney’s job.
How much does a criminal lawyer cost?
Unfortunately, we have to speak money. On the one hand, not everybody has enough money to pay for the finest legal representation money can buy. That can be a hefty sum, believe us. Well worth it, but, still, hefty.
On the other, every individual facing potential criminal charges and trial wants to secure the best possible legal representation for the money available. And that’s understandable – nobody would want to pay more for less. Some lawyers cost $1,000, while others can cost $10,000 or $20,000.
What makes this big of a difference, you may be wondering? The cost of the legal fees is primarily down to two factors:
- The experience and the track record of the attorney
- The severity of the case
If you want a renowned attorney representing you, it’s likely you will pay more, especially if your case is a tough one. And you should definitely pay more for an experienced lawyer, without question. But we cannot provide even an estimate of the potential costs, since every case is unique.
How much do criminal attorneys make?
We regret to disappoint you, but the honest answer is that we simply cannot know. The average attorney’s pay last year was about $120,000. However, some lawyers make a lot more than that, while others make a lot less.
However, what we can do is give you a brief list of factors that affect how much a lawyer earns, in order to help you reach as close as possible an estimate of your own:
- Location
- Specialization
- Experience
- Law firm size
- Seniority within that law firm
- Is it a public or a private lawyer
- Pay structure concerning base salary, commissions, bonuses, etc…
If you take all these factors into consideration, you can get an idea of how much a lawyer can make in a year. Not as if that should concern you. All you need to think about is securing the finest legal representation you can, and nothing else!
“Which criminal defense lawyer located in San Diego can provide the best legal representation?”
If you’re in legal trouble, and you don’t know whom to turn to, there is always one place you can go to – Monder Criminal Lawyer Group. We are an ensemble of experienced and dedicated criminal defense lawyers who always give it their all for our clients.
Visiting Potato Chip Rock to clear your head and try to get a handle of things is all well and good, but why not consult with us and let us solve your problems? If you’re deciding on a lawyer, choose a member of the Monder Criminal Lawyer Group!
