Insurance and Drivers’ License Points
A primary goal in handling traffic tickets is to maintain our clients’ good driving record. In doing this, we also try to minimize any insurance increase or insurance points that could result from a moving violation. Additionally, we are aware of how moving violations cause drivers’ license points, so we strive to minimize drivers’ license points resulting from traffic charges, in order to preserve our client’s right to continue driving.
Mandatory Court Appearance / Waiver of Appearance
Traffic ticket cases are routinely postponed repeatedly, often by the District Attorney. In fact, the first court date on most tickets is for “administrative court”, which is a court date when no police officer even appears. The District Attorney uses this first court date to accept guilty pleas and make sure that persons entitled to court-appointed lawyers have had a chance to apply for a lawyer. Contested cases are usually rescheduled to “the officer’s court date”.
We ordinarily have our clients sign a “Waiver of Appearance”, which allows the attorney to appear in court, without our client having to travel to court or wait in court. Using the Waiver, we ordinarily fully resolve the traffic court matter without our client ever being required to travel to Boone or to attend court.
When we appear in court with a Waiver, we will often “continue” (postpone) the court case without our client needing to be present, until we can complete the case in accordance with our goal. As we learn new information concerning the case, we will discuss any problems or opportunities with our client before finalizing the matter.
You can keep track of your court dates by using the following link and searching under the county and your name: www.nccourts.gov
While working on our client’s case, we hold our client’s money in our trust account, which is an audited account. When the case closes, we account for how the money was used, forward our client any refund due, and also provide our client with a letter fully explaining what occurred in court, as this information may be important to our client in the future concerning their insurance and driver’s license status.