Traffic Lawyer Rec's for Bay Area?

Hi Everyone,

Does anyone have any recommendations on a traffic lawyer to help fight a speeding ticket in the San Mateo court? Not so much "fight" but rather to represent me in court and do the discovery, etc. to see if I can dismiss somehow.

Also, any idea how much these lawyers usually go for? I've gotten one quote for $600 flat.

I was zapped at 91 in a 65 (on 280 north bound) couple of weeks ago. Perfect driving record up until then

Thanks!

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re:

oh ok, cool thanks

any idea if $600 is around the right figure to pay for these lawyers?

That's not an question that's easy to answer. I'm sure if you had time to check out every lawyer in your town you'd find some that would do it for less, and some that wouldn't even talk to you on the phone for ten minutes for $600.

It really all depends on what you can afford. Your most important criterion should be whether, after speaking with him, you feel a certain confidence in his ability to represent you. He should be straightforward and absolutely clear as to what you can realistically expect. On this forum, one common complaint about lawyers is that they weren't as accessible as their client wanted them to be, or available to talk with them every time they called. So, you and he should have a clear understanding of what you can expect from him, and what he expects from you.

If you find an attorney you are comfortable with, and you can afford whatever his rate is, you can consider that the "right" figure.

A $600 attorney for a $390 ticket???

I didn't know the ticket would be $390. That does sound lopsided. But then again, if he doesn't have a decent lawyer who can get him a decent deal, how much will his insurance rates go up? It might actually be worth it after all.

When I clerked in traffic, we used to laugh at this stuff all the time for this reason. People would hire attorneys for everything, even when they didn't need one. In fact, I had one come up to me and tell me just how high powered an attorney he was, and how his client was paying a premium for his services, so he needed the case advanced. He also needed to know which prosecutor was assigned to the case so he could immediately contact him

Here's the problem. It was a traffic infraction. There are no prosecutors, and in the end, he asked the judge to let his client attend traffic school. Something his client could have done on his own.

Granted, 30 over doesn't immediately qualify you for traffic school so you risk your insurance going up, but unless the OP has a CDL, I have yet to see a traffic ticket that required an attorney.

Re:

Thanks for the responses.

Yes it is likely a ~$400 ticket according to the latest CA fee schedule. The only reason I was thinking of retaining a lawyer is that i was above the 25mph range to qualify for traffic school and having never gone through this process and/or to a court in my life, I thought it made sense to have someone there. And he will be doing all the discovery process, etc. so in the off chance that he finds something to dismiss in that process, I could come ahead (well, by ahead I mean "just" pay $600!)

The one thing I want to absolutely avoid is a suspension of my license and I do hear that is a real possibility if I get booked at over 25 over speed limit ...

In a way this whole convoluted process does work: i have been driving like a grandma ever since the ticket and thinking of giving up driving to work altogether and take the train