Be Careful of Legal Forums

Internet forums can be very enlightening tools when doing research. Almost every question you can think of has been discussed on a forum somewhere. In the case of DUI related legal information, you will find several forums catering to this topic.

Tips:

1. Call an attorney in the State you got your DUI in first.

A lot of information on DUIs you will find on the internet will be specific to another state. The best way to get accurate information is to call and lawyer in the state you got your DUI in. If you got a DUI in different state than where you reside, the DUI laws will apply in the state where the infraction was issued. This website is a great resource to find a DUI attorney in the appropriate state.

2. Be careful of predatory DUI lawyers.

A lot of attorneys will stake out forums looking for someone who has recently received a DUI. The unsuspecting person will post questions regarding their DUI on a forum and certain lawyers will scare them into being their client. This type of DUI hunting and scaring reveals an unprofessional character about the lawyer and should be avoided at all costs.

3. Watch out for misinformation.

Legal forums are not legal encyclopedias. Just like any other chat room on the internet, there are a lot of “know-it-alls” who really don’t know what they are typing about. You don’t want to take someone’s advice and experience and apply it your case. For example, if someone writes about how they got off a DUI because they blew a .08 (thinking they were not OVER the limit), and you decide to drop your own case. This would cause you a great world of pain due to the fact that you would miss your own court date and a warrant would be issued for your arrest.

4. If you are going to read a legal forum, spend a lot of time on it.

It takes days of reading a forum to figure out how good the content is. There are hundreds of topics on legal forums and it takes plenty of time to read through it all. The first minute on a new topic can make you think you have just figured out the answer to your problem. But more times than not, further reading will open up new questions and make your problem slightly more complex.

5. Read the state’s legal resources.

The state you received a DUI in, will have all of it’s laws available on the internet. If you simply type in the vehicle code (found on your DUI paperwork) into Google, you should see the specific law you were written up for being the first listing on Google. Clicking on this link will reveal the actual DUI law that governs your pending case. Read all information related to this law. The more you know about the law you have been accused of violating, the better you can position yourself when it is time to pick a lawyer and help structure your own defense.