While you might hope to go your entire life without ever needing to turn to an attorney, you could find yourself in situations where you need one. There are some things, such as a traffic ticket or small claims issue, that you can handle by yourself. However, there are other times that you’ll want to rely on an attorney.

1. Bankruptcy

If you’re in over your head financially and you’re considering filing for bankruptcy, you’ll want to contact an attorney. Most bankruptcy attorneys offer free consultations to help explain the process to you. Before you go to your consultation, gather as much of your financial information as you can. The better the picture of your financial situation you can provide, the better the lawyer can help you know what to do and which Chapter of bankruptcy would be best for you.

2. Wrongful Termination

Whether you were fired because you spoke up about unsafe working conditions or you had a baby and needed to take some maternity leave, you need to contact an attorney if you feel that you were wrongfully terminated. You can try to file a lawsuit against your employer yourself, but you’ll likely find that it doesn’t go anywhere. Instead, rely on the expertise and knowledge of a wrongful termination lawyer Madison WV to get you the compensation you deserve.

3. Divorce

Even if you and your spouse can handle your divorce amicably, you should still hire an attorney. You want to make sure that your best interests are protected, and even though your spouse might be friendly to you, they might not want to give you what you’re entitled to. Your attorney will look over everything and fight to get you the compensation you deserve.

If you’re going through a contentious divorce, then your attorney can serve as the go-between for you and your spouse. The attorney won’t have the same biases in place, so they can keep a cooler head when doing the negotiations.

When a loved one needs you to bail them out of jail, it can feel overwhelming if you don’t know what to expect. Between bail, bonds and collateral, it’s crucial to understand how they work in this type of situation. Here are three facts about bail and bail bonds to help you figure out how to proceed if you face this decision.

1. Bail Bonds Save You From Paying a Large Amount of Money 

When someone gets arrested, a fee may be required to get them out of jail. This fine exists as a way to get people to come back for their court hearings. You have the choice of paying these fees in their entirety or with affordable bail bonds Williamsport PA. When the amount of money is more cash than you have access to, a bail bond is a good option for you. Bonds require that you put up collateral equal to the bail amount, and you only have to pay 10 percent of the fee. This is an excellent opportunity because bail can sometimes be hundreds of thousands of dollars, which most people don’t have.

2. Your Money Is At Risk With Both Bail and Bond

Once you pay the bail, your loved one must return to court for all of their hearings. If they miss any of their appointments, you are responsible for the bail amount and can lose any collateral you have put up for their release.

3. You May Get Money Back at the End of the Case

Fortunately, most people show up to court for their meetings and follow through with their court appearance obligations. Once a case is closed, regardless of whether they are found guilty or not, your money or collateral is returned to you. However, the 10 percent fee remains with the bail bond company. If you paid the full bail amount, that entire fee, minus any costs, gets refunded to you.

You’re driving home from work when you see the flashing red and blue lights in your rearview mirror. You pull over, step on the brakes, and roll down your window. The police officer tells you they pulled you over because there was a report of someone drunk driving. You are now facing charges of driving under the influence (DUI). What should you do if you’ve been pulled over for DUI? Consider the tips below. 

Get Your Car Off the Road

Doing this will show the police officers that you are cooperative. It especially works well when the officers are thinking of charging you with other offenses. This can include resisting arrest, driving without a license, or driving without insurance.

Stay Calm and Polite

Turn off your engine and keep your hands on the steering wheel. Create rapport with the officer and address them by their title (e.g., officer, sheriff). This shows respect and that you recognize authority. If you are asked to do something—such as keep your hands on the steering wheel—obey the officer’s requests, even if they seem strange. 

Maintain Silence After Being Pulled Over for DUI

When you are pulled over for DUI, the officer will ask you several questions. Expect to be asked questions such as: How much have you had to drink tonight? Have you taken any drugs within the last 3 hours? Where are you coming from and heading to? When did you last eat, and what did you eat? When did you last sleep or rest? Are you taking any medication?

All these questions are designed to elicit responses that incriminate you. Remain silent when asked such questions. Alternatively, you can politely decline all requests by saying, “I would prefer not to answer,” or, “I am exercising my right to remain silent.”

The officer may also ask you if you know why they pulled you over. If you are pulled over for DUI, an affirmative answer could be enough for them to make an arrest. Simply respond, “I don’t know,” with no further elaborations. Do not lie to the officer. Lying may be considered an obstruction of justice and may subject you to arrest.

Do Not Agree to Take Any Field Sobriety Tests Without Your Lawyer Present

This is one of the standard ways officers look for probable cause to arrest you. You need to know that the field sobriety tests are not accurate, and most people fail at least one of them. The three commonly-used tests include:

• Rearview mirror challenge: This test involves using your rearview mirror and estimating how far away an object is placed/located.
• One-leg stand: The test involves getting into a position with your feet together and then holding one leg 6 inches above the ground. You need to keep this position for 30 seconds without swaying, wobbling, or putting your foot down.
• Horizontal Gaze Nystagmus (HGN): This test aims to establish if you have alcohol in your system by checking the jerking movements of your eyes.

Never Consent to a Breathalyzer Test Without Your Lawyer’s Presence

You should decline to take this test because your blood alcohol concentration (BAC) declines with time. For instance, the amount of alcohol in your body after 4 hours will be less than what it was 1 hour after you stopped drinking. 

Additionally, an officer can still arrest you for DUI even if your BAC was at or below the legal limit when you were stopped by law enforcement.

Ask for an Independent Blood Test

This request will be granted if they don’t already have a warrant to conduct the blood test on you. Requesting for this test is beneficial because your BAC will continue to drop. As a result, a test taken a few hours after your arrest may yield a lower reading.

You may ask yourself, what are the chances of being charged after being pulled over for DUI? If you have a BAC of 0.08% or above in your blood, urine, breath, or saliva (via analysis), you will be found guilty of DUI.

Do Not Accept a Plea Bargain

A plea deal is different from what you plead guilty to at trial. For example, you can be offered a deal where instead of being charged with DUI, the police will just charge you with reckless driving. 

Before accepting any plea deals without consulting your lawyer, consider that these deals are nearly always better for the prosecution than you. Don’t sign anything before meeting with your attorney.

Seek Legal Counsel

You should never take any step that you are unsure of without speaking to an experienced DUI attorney. Your lawyer can help you out with all aspects of the case, including the number of points added to your license. They will also tell you whether or not you will be facing additional charges after being pulled over for DUI.

You can help protect yourself financially, medically, and legally if you take several steps after an accident—if you are able. Before you do anything, you need to make sure you are not going to cause yourself further harm by moving around. If you are not sure, wait for emergency medical technicians to check you over before you move. Otherwise, if you can, then you’ll want to take certain steps to protect yourself.

Take Stock of Your Situation After You Are Hit by a Car

Are you in danger of getting hit by other vehicles? If you can get further away from traffic, move away. People tend to look at accidents instead of where they are going, and you could end up being hit by a car again.

Call First Responders

As soon as you are out of danger, call first responders. If you are able, check on others who might have sustained injuries. When the emergency medical technicians arrive, allow them to check you over, even if you believe your injuries are minor. Some injuries do not manifest for hours or even until a day or two after the accident.

Gather Information

After you are hit by a car, you should gather information to help your attorney investigate your case. Obtain contact information, registration information, and insurance information from any drivers involved in the accident.

If the drivers had adult passengers in the vehicle, ask the passengers for their contact information. Finally, speak to any witnesses–obtain their contact information. You can also ask each witness what they saw. Be sure to take notes so you know which witness said what. Your car accident lawyer can use your notes during the investigation into your case.

Take Photos

Make sure you take plenty of photos after you are hit by a car. While police investigators will also take pictures, your pictures could show your attorney’s investigators something the police might have missed.

Always take pictures from every angle before anyone moves their vehicles. Make sure you get pictures of skid marks, other road damage, and damage to any property, including mailboxes, poles, fences, and yards.

Include photos of your injuries, even if you take the pictures after you get to the hospital. You might have a nurse help you take photos of injuries that you cannot see. You can also use a mirror to get photos of hard-to-see injuries.

Do Not Discuss the Accident With Other Drivers

While it is most likely difficult, remain calm during the time you are interacting with others, especially other drivers. They could pass what you say onto their insurance companies. The representatives could twist your words to try to assign blame to you. The only person you should discuss the accident with is the police officer taking your statement. After the officer takes your statement, ask to read what is written so that you can make any necessary corrections.

After the Police Release You From the Accident Scene

Obtain medical attention immediately if you do not accept a ride to the hospital in the ambulance. Let the medical providers know that you were in an accident and need a thorough checkup.

Document Your Injuries

Once the hospital releases you, keep track of how you feel and what is currently injured. You’ll need to document any additional injuries that show up in the next few days, including signs that point to anxiety, depression, and post-traumatic stress disorder.

You should keep a diary of how you feel from the time of the wreck until you recover from any injuries. Make sure to note the date and time you notice new aches and pains or psychological issues.

If a loved one mentions a change in your behavior or attitude, take it seriously. Make a note of your loved one’s comments, including the date, time, and how you are feeling at the moment. If you continue to notice these feelings, document them. For example, you might lose patience with your loved ones more often. Document every time you lose patience. You might not think it is relevant at first, but it could become relevant.

Contact a Car Accident Lawyer After You Are Hit by a Car

Contact a personal injury lawyer with experience in pedestrian and bicyclist accidents. If you do this within a few days of the wreck, you can also give the insurance company your attorney’s contact information. It is better that you simply notify the insurance company that you were in a wreck and that your attorney will be in contact with more information. The insurance company will definitely try to take a statement from you and will most likely use that statement against you.

A car accident lawyer knows the insurance companies play this and other tricks in an attempt to deny claims. If possible, it’s better for the attorney to handle filing the claim so you don’t end up leaving money on the table.

When you or a loved one are facing jail time, it’s easy to get confused by all the legal terminology being thrown at your head. What does the right to remain silent mean? What is habeas corpus? What are all the different kinds of bail?

Luzerne County bail bonds can be confusing, but they are not impossible to understand. Bail is the money that is paid to the court by an arrestee as a promise to show up at court when their trial takes place. Here you’ll find a few different types of bail bonds and what they involve.

Personal Recognizance 

For minor offenses which involve little or no risk, the arrestee can be excused from bail. However, he must be sure to show up to court, or else he could be arrested and held in custody until trial.

Surety Bond

When you don’t have the assets to pay your bond money yourself, a bail bondsman can help you pay it. You pay the bondsman a certain non-refundable percentage of the bond, and they will pay the full amount to the court. They assume responsibility for your bail, but keep in mind that they will come to hunt you down and make you pay the full amount if you don’t come to court.

Cash or Property Bond

Some people have the resources to pay their bonds. If this is you, then you can make a payment to the court in the form either of cash or of property. If you fulfill all your responsibilities, then the court will refund you the money or property in full, but if you fail to keep up your end, then the assets will be forfeited to the court.

So here you have a few basic types of bail bonds. There are more complicated, involved types of bail, such as immigration bonds or release on citation. However, these are the types you’re more likely to encounter. As you can see, the most important thing is to show up for your court dates on time. This will prevent many problems in the future.