Hiring a DUI Lawyer

Being arrested and accused of intoxicated driving, which goes by all of the following acronyms, OWI, DUI, DWI, OUIL, UBAL, is a frightening experience for anyone. Most DUI offenders are first offenders. Since they have never been through criminal justice system, so they are totally unfamiliar with how to find and hire an experienced Michigan DUI attorney. Some may not fully understand why they need a lawyer or understand the role played by a DUI lawyer working on their side.

Michigan lawyers all have two things in common; they have graduated from law school and have passed the Michigan Bar Exam. After that, who knows? One thing that is for sure though is that all lawyers are not created equal. For example, private defense attorneys are different from public defenders.

Additionally, there are certain qualities that separate all the top lawyers from all the rest. These three qualities are passion, character and continuing education.

Passion in this context refers to the lawyer's belief in the client's case as well as the even bigger issue, which is the defense of the "cause." The criminal justice system gives great advantages to the government and prosecutor’s conviction rates are high. The best DUI lawyers are those willing to fight this unfairness meaning the unfair advantage given to the prosecution. This kind of passion translates into the lawyer's innate ability to obtain results for the client. Not only do the top DUI lawyers have a passion for their client's case, but they also have a love and a passion for the defense of the Constitution. Drunk driving defense is at its core the defense of the Constitution. So, defending the drunk driving accused is really the same thing as defending the Constitutional principles on which our Country was founded.

The Michigan DUI Lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm are passionate about drunk driving defense. They believe that the State of Michigan's drunk driving laws are way too tough, not just the way they are written but more importantly the way they are interpreted and applied to individual’s lives. They also believe that too many good people end up having their lives turned upside down by over-zealous law enforcement, all simply because MADD is such an effective lobbying group. This passion means that our lawyers fight for their client's cause as if it were his own.

Mr. Barone's passion for the law has helped motivate him to write five books and many dozens of legal articles on defending the intoxicated driving case and many other criminal defense topics. All the lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm are equally passionate and have all been published.

The best DUI lawyers in Michigan always combine this passion with a desire to maintain a high ethical standard in their law practices. This meticulous attention to our profession’s highest and most enduring ethical principles translates into many positive relationships with those persons who are necessary to obtain results for the client. This includes by way of example, court room personnel, the prosecuting attorney and police officers, and most importantly, their clients.

The third quality that separates top lawyers, like Patrick T. Barone and the other lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm is a passionate pursuit of the law in form of continuing education. There are many kinds of continuing education such as book learning, auditing classes at universities and law schools, attending seminars by organizations like the College for DUI Defense, the Michigan Association of OWI Attorneys, The Nation Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers, the DUI Defense Lawyers Association, improv, psychodrama, storytelling, and many other places. The Michigan DUI Lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm have all have this kind of training.

The Barone Defense Firm only handles criminal cases. The focus is on the defense of DUI/OWI cases. Having this focus helps us to stay current and familiar with all the nuances enacted each year by the legislature.

The Michigan DUI Lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm have certifications as instructor and practitioner of the Standardized Field Sobriety Tests in accordance with the standards set forth by the International Association of Chiefs of Police (IACP) and the National Highway Traffic Safety Administration (NHTSA), Practitioner Certification by the American Board of Examiners in Psychodrama, Sociometry and Group Psychotherapy, Certified as competent by the manufacturer of the DataMaster (Michigan's breath test machine) to operate, perform essential diagnostic verifications and calibration checks on their machine, and others. They are also graduates of the National College for DUI Defense and The Gerry Spence Trial Lawyer’s College. He is also one the small number of Michigan lawyers who have been.

The Michigan DUI Lawyers at the Barone Defense Firm belong now or have belonged to and participated in many different criminal defense associations, including the National College for DUI Defense, the National Association for Criminal Defense Attorneys, The Criminal Defense Attorneys for Michigan, the Michigan Association of OWI Attorneys and the Criminal Law Section of the State Bar of Michigan.