Benefits of Hiring a Board Certified Criminal Lawyer
Why should you choose to work with a Board Certified attorney? Board Certification is a mark of excellence and a distinguishing accomplishment that sets an attorney apart from his or her peers. Within the legal community in Texas, an attorney who is Board Certified is known for having substantial experience in a select field of the law, as well as demonstrated, proven and special competence in that area.
When attorneys choose to go through the process of Board Certification, they must have already been in practice for five years with a minimum of three years’ experience in the specialty area of law. The Board Certification process is rigorous and extremely thorough. Attorneys must also furnish at least 10 qualified, vetted references and provide extensive and relevant experience and documentation. Additionally, an attorney must also pass a comprehensive specialty area examination that lasts an entire day.
Many people do not realize that Board Certification is not only a one-time event. Rather, it requires ongoing involvement in the specialty area and periodic references from peers in that field of law as well. It also requires continuing legal education course work and annual professional refreshment in order to keep up with current changes and trends in the legal world.
There are 21 select areas of law in which an attorney can become Board Certified, including civil trial, bankruptcy, criminal, immigration, tax, real estate, family, criminal appellate, estate planning and more. The Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS) is the only organization in Texas authorized to provide the certification service, and the TBLS operates under the continuing jurisdiction of the Supreme Court of Texas. Paralegals can also receive certification by completing a process that closely parallels the attorney certification process. More than 300 paralegals in Texas have distinguished themselves with board certification so far.
In 2012, the TBLS created a new certification for the specialty area of law involving criminal appeals, and 84 Board Certified attorneys were recently welcomed as the first group of specialists in Criminal Appellate law. This certification is available for Texas attorneys who have handled a sufficient number of post-conviction writs and appeals in criminal cases, and the other requirements are similar to those in other specialty areas. To learn why you should consider hiring a Board Certified attorney if you have been accused of a crime, call a Board-Certified Houston criminal defense lawyer at The Law Offices of Ned Barnett today.
