Like all professions, there is a spectrum of competency. If you are represented by a lawyer on the wrong side of the competency spectrum, you may experience dire consequences. You could be convinced into pleading guilty in a situation where you had viable avenues of defence that were well worth fighting. You may receive a criminal record that could have lifetime consequences, or even worse, it could result in a period of incarceration, which may have dire physical or psychological consequences.
What factors make the best criminal lawyer?
What differentiates a good lawyer from the best lawyer is multifaceted. Some of the factors to consider are as follows:
Hard-working.
No surprise, a lawyer who works harder will be better prepared, know your case better, and ultimately increase the odds of a favourable outcome.
Manageable Case Load.
Some criminal lawyers take on hundreds of clients at a time.
The best criminal lawyers limit the number of clients they represent to ensure they have adequate time to review and prepare to defend criminal charges. Most experienced defence counsel will tell you they can always use more time to prepare a file – there is no limit. If your time is divided into 500 different files, an individual file will not get the same attention as if divided into 40 or 50.
Lineage – Learned from the best.
It is critical to have a good mentor in a profession as complex and vast as criminal law. Typically, the best lawyers come from a lineage of excellent lawyers.
Willingness to fight
Canadian criminal law is an adversarial legal system. This means two sides argue against each other, typically for an opposite outcome. A good lawyer will not shy away from viable arguments because it makes them feel uncomfortable.