Having to face a criminal trial can be nerve-wracking. The best solace comes from leaving your case in the safe hands of expert criminal attorneys in Tulsa. A criminal trial is one of the toughest spots one can get into and coming out of it unscathed requires the support of a criminal attorney with experience and passion.
Tulsa has a number of criminal attorneys who have handled diverse areas of criminal law. However, zeroing in on the right attorney from the long list of lawyers can be quite a daunting task.
You should do an in-depth investigation of the attorney’s credentials before hiring one for your trial because you are going to entrust him with your life and future.
Here are a few tips you can follow and find good criminal attorneys in Tulsa.
Find the Best Criminal Attorneys in Tulsa, Oklahoma
Look for Relevant Experience
Law is highly complex and criminal lawyers usually specialize in particular branches of criminal law. One may be an expert in dealing with drunken driving cases while another may be experienced in drug offenses.
When you look for a good criminal attorney, rather than the overall experience, you should consider the experience particular to your case. How many similar cases have they handled in the recent past? How many have been successful? Go for criminal attorneys in Tulsa who can provide you with an excellent track record in dealing with cases similar to yours.
Local Courtroom Experience
Do not overlook this factor because it plays an important role in deciding the outcome of a case. When fighting a criminal case, local connections can help greatly. Each court and the judge will have their own set of ways and having exposure to the court where your trial will take place is a big advantage. An attorney who can show you a good number of cases he had handled in Tulsa is a good choice.
Excellent Investigation Skills
Good criminal attorneys in Tulsa is a good investigator who can spend long hours researching vital information to build a good defense. He should know where to look for information and how to find it. Have a go-through on the previous cases handled by the attorney to understand his investigation skills and the new elements he had introduced to the previous trials.
Don’t go for over promises- Nobody can guarantee you the outcome of the trial, not even the best attorney. So do not get carried away by promises or guarantees of 100 % success. Choose a confident attorney and not an arrogant one.
Passion Plays a Big Role
Good criminal attorneys in Tulsa are your biggest support throughout your trial. He should have the passion and personal interest to stand by your side and put in the maximum effort to get you a favorable outcome.
Personal Rapport
This is a very important factor to consider because no matter how successful an attorney maybe if you cannot develop a good personal rapport with him, it will automatically hurt your trial. Once you have shortlisted a few good attorneys, get in touch with each of them and select the one with whom you feel most comfortable. The attorney should be someone you can talk to openly. He should have the patience to clear your doubts and your anxieties related to the trial.
The Whole Team Matters
A case is never handled by the attorney alone. The legal process is highly complicated that a big team is involved in taking the case to completion. Check the team members of the criminal attorney. The skills and experience of the other criminal lawyers in the team are also important as they are the ones who will step in to represent you in case any emergency situation arises. The administrative team and paralegals should also be skilled and efficient. Request the attorney to give you a brief tour of his office so that you can personally satisfy yourself with the details.
Ask for References
Testimonials are always great because it comes from personal knowledge. If you have friends who are into the legal business or have contacts in the field, consult them to get references from good criminal attorneys. They might be able to point you to the right person for your case and such personal recommendations rarely go wrong.
Search Online
When you look online for the best criminal attorneys, do not make the mistake of jumping to select from the first few games available on the list. These are people who have invested heavily in marketing to make a digital presence and need not be the best.
Go through the list carefully and visit their websites to understand their career records better. The number of cases they have handled, important cases and high profile ones, accomplishments, and client reviews should be examined thoroughly.
Do Not Blindly Trust the Online Ratings
Online ratings are not accurate most of the time. Though you can trust the client reviews to an extent, most of the star ratings should be ignored. A mediocre criminal attorney can easily get a five-star rating on a website by paying the required fee.
Clarity on the Fees
A good defense attorney would be professional enough in putting before you a well-defined fee structure. The billing aspects would be clear and they wouldn’t mind explaining to you how much you will need to shell out by the end of the trial. Never judge the quality of an attorney based on the fees. A high charging attorney need not be the best. Quality comes from experience and fee should ever be the deciding factor.
Go for a Public Defender if Possible
Public attorneys are the best legal experts available and would have handled more cases than a private attorney. They know the law in and out and their interest in a case is not driven by money put by the purpose. So, if the judge assigns a public counsel it is highly recommended to take it as it is affordable too.
While selecting the criminal attorney, take your time to select the right person. The time you invest searching for the best attorney is going to be worth it because the choice of attorney can make or break your case.
