What to I do if I have a warrant for failure to appear because my attorney said thatI didn’t need to go to court?
Get Legal Help Today
Compare Quotes From Top Companies and Save
Secured with SHA-256 Encryption
What to I do if I have a warrant for failure to appear because my attorney said thatI didn’t need to go to court?
I have a assualt charge. My lawyer told me not to go to court that it would be dismissed and i had no reason to go. So I didn’t and now I have a warrent for my arrest for not showing up to court. What can I do?
Asked on August 20, 2010 under Criminal Law, Texas
Answers:
MD, Member, California Bar / FreeAdvice Contributing Attorney
Answered 13 years ago | Contributor
If your attorney was a public defender, you better have solid proof to inform his or her supervisor. You need to inform your supervisor (and bring along any witnesses you may have) to explain what occurred. What can happen is (since the public defender's office doesn't want any bad publicity) the supervisor would contact the court and prosecutor, indicate what happened and see if the warrant can be reversed, your record wiped of that issue and a plea made. Second, consider filing a complaint against this attorney with the state bar in Texas. State bars tend to frown on such misconduct (think malpractice) by counsel. Additionally, if this lawyer you had was a private criminal defense attorney, consider hiring a new one, suing the former for lawyer's fees you incurred and still filing a complaint with the state bar. Do not wait..the longer you wait on a pending warrant the worse it will look for you.
IMPORTANT NOTICE: The Answer(s) provided above are for general information only. The attorney providing the answer was not serving as the attorney for the person submitting the question or in any attorney-client relationship with such person. Laws may vary from state to state, and sometimes change. Tiny variations in the facts, or a fact not set forth in a question, often can change a legal outcome or an attorney's conclusion. Although AttorneyPages.com has verified the attorney was admitted to practice law in at least one jurisdiction, he or she may not be authorized to practice law in the jurisdiction referred to in the question, nor is he or she necessarily experienced in the area of the law involved. Unlike the information in the Answer(s) above, upon which you should NOT rely, for personal advice you can rely upon we suggest you retain an attorney to represent you.