Can I take an attorney to the administrative hearing at the DMV? 19 Answers as of August 04, 2011

It depends on several factors.

Yes, you can have an attorney represent you but it is not required. You can go on to the California Motor Vehicles website and look under Administrative Hearings for more information.

Yes an attorney who is familiar with those hearings can be very helpful.

Yes.

Yes, and you should not be doing an APS hearing at DMV without an experienced DUI lawyer. The same lawyer should be handling your DUI case in court.

Yes, in fact if you have an attorney for the APS hearing with the DMV you may not need to be there. You should speak with a criminal defense attorney right away so they can request discovery and decide if officers should be subpoenaed to the hearing, as well as if your presence will be necessary. The DMV hearing can have a large impact on the rest of your case so it is very important that you speak with a criminal defense attorney about conducting the hearing for you.

Yes, you can have an attorney represent you at a DMV administrative hearing; and, depending on the facts of the case, having an attorney at the hearing can be of enormous help. DMV hearing officers are particularly schooled regarding the procedural aspects of lawful stops, tests and arrests; accordingly, if your case has procedural defaults it is sometimes possible to bring a successful challenge at the administrative hearing. But win or lose, an attorney at a formal DMV hearing can be of great advantage in a close case, as the testimony given at the hearing can be ordered from the DMV in transcript form for later use at trial. Unlike the trial setting, where a law enforcement officer often has the opportunity to discuss his or her testimony with a prosecutor in advance, officers at DMV hearings are most often unrepresented. A favorable cross-examination of a law enforcement contained in a DMV transcript can be a powerful tool for the defense at a subsequent trial. Having said all that, it would be best to discuss the particular facts of your case with an lawyer with DUI litigation experience before making a decision as to whether or not to proceed with a formal hearing accompanied by counsel.

Yes, and you should never do those by yourself.

YES!

Yes! You SHOULD hire an attorney for that hearing. DMV hearings have many technical defenses/arguments ray can be made that ate not readily apparent to the lay-person. Even some lawyers who don't practice In DUI cases do not know of some of these arguments.