This is a good question and I'm sure that it's one people are thinking about. They're also probably asking themselves, well, if I get the best attorney, is that going to cost me an arm-and-a-leg?
I wrote a book called The Art of the Perfect Defense, and in that book, I talk about some of the law firms that are in Los Angeles county, some of the strategies that some attorneys are employing, and it's meant to help people pick the attorney they're looking for.
Local Experience in All The Criminal Courts
There's more than one attorney that could be your best attorney. I think what you want to do is find somebody who has local experience, because in LA, being such a vast metropolis — 38 courts, District Attorneys all over the place.
There's probably 1,200 DA's right now and you've got to have an attorney that knows their way around the LA court system, because one DA could be in a particular courthouse one day, and the next month, they could be transferred to a different courthouse. So, you've got to know all the DA's and who the supervisors are.
Los Angeles county is like a big bureaucracy. The District Attorney's office is like a giant corporation, so you have to understand as an attorney:
- what their procedures are,
- how they decide cases, and
- what the proper protocol is in dealing with a case.
I would think, number one would be getting a local attorney. Of course, when I talk about this, I'm talking about it from a perspective from the fact that I've been practicing in LA county now for almost 30 years.
So, I have a pretty good idea about how criminal cases are handled — how the District Attorney's office handles these cases. So, of course, I put myself in that elite category of attorneys who's:
- been practicing a long time,
- understands the local court system,
- understands how to win a criminal case, and
- understands what it takes to negotiate a criminal case, if that's what we decide to do.
Attorney Who Knows the Judges and Prosecutors
So, if you're looking for the best criminal defense attorney for you, the number one thing is to hire an attorney who knows the Los Angeles court system.
To me, I would characterize that attorney as a local attorney; meaning, an attorney who appears in the courts all the time, knows the judges, knows the prosecutors.
When I talk about the best criminal defense attorney in Los Angeles, I'm talking about it from your perspective. There could be great attorneys out there but they rub you the wrong way.
All the time when I meet with people, they tell me, yeah, I met with that attorney. It looks like he's got good credentials, but he was a real jerk, didn't listen to my side of the story, didn't really want to hear what I had to say.
So, you have to feel comfortable with the attorney that you're hiring. That's why instead of just saying it's the best criminal defense attorney in LA, you want the best criminal defense attorney for you.
Negotiation with Prosecutor vs. Trial
Another big thing is, you've got to decide what you're going to do in the case. Are you going to negotiate it? Are you going to take it to trial? Do you hope to use some sort of a motion to win the case?
Fortunately, for me, I've got all those skills. I take cases to trial all the time. I've done over 200 jury trials in LA county. I negotiate cases every day. I've negotiated thousands of cases.
I think it says on my website now that I've done over 10,000 cases. I'm sure I've done at least that, probably more. When you're in court every single day dealing with cases, those numbers add up, when you've been doing it almost 30 years.
I love what I do. I enjoy it. I think when you come and sit down with me, you will get a good feel about me. That I'm there to help you and that I do relate very well to all sorts of different people.
Best Criminal Defense for California Crimes
Whether it be somebody who's trying to make their way in the world, or a judge, or somebody in between. It doesn't really matter. People are people. I, as a criminal defense attorney, need to fight for my client and get them the best possible result. So, those are two big things:
- local attorney, crucial;
- attorney you feel comfortable with, crucial;
- skill in negotiating and skill in winning cases at a jury trial.
So, I think those are the three things right there. I've got a lot of skill doing jury trials. That's my favorite thing to do. That's where my talent lies.
That's why I became a criminal defense attorney because I love to argue; I love to fight; I love to champion my client's position.
If you or a loved one has a criminal case and are looking for the best criminal defense attorney for you specifically, pick up the phone. Ask for a meeting with Ron Hedding. I stand at the ready to help you.
Hedding Law Firm is a criminal defense law firm located in the San Fernando Valley area of Los Angeles County at 16000 Ventura Blvd #1208 Encino, CA 91436.
We serve individuals in all Southern California courtrooms, including LA County, Orange County, Ventura County, Santa Barbara County, Hollywood, Santa Clarita, Simi Valley, Riverside, and San Bernardino. Contact us for a free case evaluation at (213) 542-0979.
