If a person has been arrested for burglary, he needs to find that best criminal defense attorney he can afford to hire. A number of factors can go into choosing the best burglary lawyer. A qualified burglary lawyer should have experience, should be willing to take the time to answer any questions that the accused has, and should be compatible with the accused.
To get the best legal defense, a person who has been arrested for any crime should hire a lawyer who has a specialization and experience in that field. It makes no sense to hire a bankruptcy attorney to fight a burglary charge because the bankruptcy attorney is not as likely to be able to navigate the criminal court system. A bankruptcy lawyer is also less likely to be able to develop a workable defense strategy for burglary.
One should interview a lawyer who specializes in burglary before hiring him and the burglary lawyer should be able to provide statistics on how his past burglary cases have been resolved. A burglary lawyer whose clients frequently land in jail, or land in jail with long prison terms is less desirable than an attorney who has been able to plead down charges or had clients proved innocent. If a burglary lawyer is not willing to share this information, the burglary lawyer may be hiding incompetency. Experience is not only about the amount of time that a lawyer has practiced a specialty, but also about how effective the attorney has been.
Some lawyers appear to be rushed and unwilling to take the time to explain the legal implications of an individual's case. This should not necessarily completely disqualify a burglary attorney, but it is certainly a red flag. If a burglary attorney is unwilling to explain the intricacies of the accused's case, it could be because the lawyer is over-booked and does not really have the time to try the case effectively. It can also mean that the lawyer is not an effective communicator, which could be a real problem if the accused's case goes to court.
Compatibility is another key factor in hiring an effective burglary lawyer. The word compatibility generally means that the accused and the lawyer will be able to get along and communicate well. This does not mean that the lawyer should immediately agree to everything that the accused says. It means that the burglary lawyer can effectively communicate the negatives and well as the positives of the case in a manner that keeps communication between the attorney and the accused open.