Quick and Easy Guide to Juvenile Court Legal Representation

In securing a juvenile lawyer, quality should be a defendant's top priority. Of course, a minor and his or her family might already have connections to a juvenile attorney through blood relation or past experience, but if not, any hired legal professional will be an experienced in-court advocate for children and very knowledgeable about the subject of juvenile law. Then again, the inability of minors and/or their parents to afford an outside juvenile lawyer may be a limiting factor. In that event, a court-appointed representative should be better than none at all.

It should be noted that a juvenile attorney will not be available in all cases. Only defendants who face being remanded to the custody of a state-run facility will generally be able to have legal representation in their corner.

A juvenile attorney may not have to be directly involved in the case to lend a hand to parties. Under the doctrine of amicus curiae (i.e. "friend of the court"), a particularly knowledgeable and interested legal representative not a party to the hearing may submit briefs through the court to help bring to light relevant information heretofore unconsidered. Expectedly, it is up to the individual court to decide whether or not to permit these materials.

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