Getting pulled over after partying with your friends or family is not a pretty situation, even worse is if you cause a wreck while driving home from the celebration. The only reason that you might get pulled over in Ottawa is you happen to be driving erratically, speeding, or you ran a stop sign or light, and then the officer discovers you had been drinking. Getting arrested for “DUI,” is the same as driving, being high on drugs.

At once, this means going to court in addition to needing to hire a lawyer who has experience handling this type of case. Even if you chose to attempt to represent yourself in court it is going to be an expensive proposition once all is said and done. The sad part is if you cannot afford to pay for a lawyer, a public defender appointed by the Ottawa courts is your only recourse.

Keep in mind there are special circumstances that surround every DUI, in addition, there is no special certification stating that any one lawyer is an expert on DUI cases. The only thing you can take solace in is the amount of experience a given lawyer has this type of crime, yes it is a crime to drive under the influence of any mind altering substance. The penalties come in the form of fines and jail time.

This is why it is important to get a private Ottawa lawyer who has the experience. Typically, they can negotiate fines down to a minimum and no jail time if it is your first offence. If, however, it is a repeat offence then things are going to be a bit rough when it comes to reducing the charges to a minimum.

When compared to an Ottawa public defender, who by the way is not as experienced with DUI’s as a lawyer with a private practice, that makes a point to handle such cases. You can pretty much expect poor representation. This is not to say that a public defender is a bad lawyer, it is just that their workload prevents them from spending any quality time with their clients in order to properly, prepare a strong defence.

All that being stated what you want is a lawyer that will examine your DUI case thoroughly, and devise a strategy for a strong defence on your behalf. This means that the lawyer should have the desire to win the case and either nullifies the charges against you or gets them diminished to the point of a small fine. In a best case scenario, it pays to not, drink and drive, nevertheless, we are all human and prone to such mistakes, if you do make this mistake, find an Ottawa lawyer with the right experience, you will be glad you did.