wisconsin owi-dui.com

hiring local owi counsel

does the location of my attorney matter?

Is it better to hire an attorney who is geographically located nearest to me, or the court?

a law firm's location

historical attorney-client communications

Historically, clients always met their attorneys in person, and the meetings were always held at the attorney's office. Consequently, traveling distance between the two was a major consideration, particularly if it would obstruct communications.

current trends in attorney-client communications

In today's "wired" world, clients usually prefer the common, quick and easy access to their attorneys offered via e-mail and cell phones. Consequently, traveling distance has become much less important.

economics of attorney fees & travel

Attorneys' fees are based on their expertise in a particular area of law. While a slight percentage of an attorney's fee recovers traveling costs and traveling time, the majority of their fee - as well as the deviation of fees amongst lawyers - is for legal work performed on the case. One might be penny wise, but dime foolish for hiring an attorney based on fees.

law firm location -vs- plea objectives

If the objective is to obtain the best possible results in your drunk driving case, then it is wiser and more cost effective to hire a drunk driving defense attorney for his or her expertise and qualifications in defending those types of cases than it is to hire an attorney based on the fact that they are located near the courthouse.

However, there is a correlation between the attorney and the courthouse - or more accurately, the courtroom - that is vitally important.

courts & procedures

All Wisconsin circuit courts fall under the umbrella of the Wisconsin Judicial System, but each courtroom prescribes to an individual set of procedural rules. The judge makes those rules, and expects all attorneys who come before the bench to comply. Most such rules are published in a book of courtroom rules and procedures, which can be easily obtained and reviewed by your attorney if he or she is unfamiliar with the court. However, the demeanor of the court, which may impact the outcome more than any rule of procedure, wouldn't be found in any hardcover edition of Judges & Their Personalities - such does not exist.

prior adjudication before the judge

The eyes of justice may be blind, but the eyes of the bench are not - just as not all attorneys are the same, not all judges are the same.

The attorneys presented here have tried numerous cases before many judges in the state of Wisconsin. They have learned the intricate nuances of a court, the judge's demeanor on similar cases and tolerance for legal arguments, as well as the judge's historical verdicts. Those lessons learned over the course of decades of trial work in front of the same judges provide you, the client, with the distinct advantage of their unpublished and unparalleled knowledge that could only have been gained through experience with the courts in which they frequently try cases.

plea bargaining with prosecutors

Preliminary to a trial, there will be opportunities (if you hire the attorney soon enough) for your lawyer to negotiate with the prosecuting attorney in an attempt to have the charges dropped, or in the alternative, reduced to a lesser offense or traffic ticket. With Wisconsin's newest campaign (Drive Drunk, Get Arrested), prosecutors are as aggressive in their prosecution of OWI charges as are police in their quick arrest of suspects; consequently, they are more reluctant to negotiate a charge down. By hiring an attorney who is familiar with the district attorney and his or her assistants, you are far more likely to have a favorable outcome. Additionally, if the attorney you hire is from this website, they already know the local prosecutors, have tried cases before those judges, and are previously known to the legal community for their aggressive defense and swift legal strategies. In short, their reputations precede them, which also affects the outcome of plea negotiations with a prosecuting attorney.

out of state attorneys

While it may go without saying, it is worthwhile to mention out-of-state attorneys. When lawyers from other states defend people in Wisconsin against Wisconsin OWI charges, several issues arise.

Attorneys who are not licensed to practice law in the state of Wisconsin must have another Wisconsin-licensed attorney vouch for him or her before a court will allow the out-of-state lawyer to defend a case in that court.

In addition to the preliminary lack of welcome, Wisconsin laws are unique. Wisconsin is the only state in which a first offense is not a crime. Wisconsin's Court of Appeals has been very aggressive in deciding cases that further define Wisconsin's OWI laws. However, the court has also kept those cases unpublished and therefore not readily available to those who are unaware of the rulings. Conversely, the Wisconsin attorneys listed here regularly analyze those unpublished rulings, along with the published ones, amongst themselves. Out-of-state attorneys also do not participate in those discussions.

In addition to the huge obstacle that the lack of knowledge of unpublished cases creates for attorneys from another state, there is the matter of pre-trial work. From the moment you enlist a Wisconsin attorney from this site to represent you, they are on-their-feet fighting for you, defending your rights and negotiating with the prosecutor in your case. In that they have previously been in similar negotiations with that prosecutor, and regardless of whether the outcome was a win or loss for the prosecutor, that prosecutor knows that your Wisconsin attorney will take your case to trial. On the other hand, the prosecutor also likely and correctly assumes that an attorney from another state is highly unlikely to take a case to trial in this state if it is preventable. That little fact can cause a huge impact on the prosecuting attorney's position in negotiations to dismiss or reduce your charge. It is easy to see how the prosecuting attorney would be even less inclined to give up his or her position on the basis that the out-of-state attorney will likely crumble in the last hours to avoid the travel and expense of a trial.

finding qualified defense attorneys

Until now, a person seeking a highly qualified drunk driving defense attorney likely spent numerous hours reading through hundreds of websites to determine what might serve as a mechanism by which to determine if an attorney was even experienced in handling OWI cases. OWI-DUI recognized the overwhelming issue that people just like you faced, and given the time limits in an OWI case and urgency with which you must act, saw a need to help people with a few of those issues. Here, you will find Wisconsin's best drunk driving defense attorneys. These lawyers focus on OWI cases, and their records are second to none.