Being convicted of a DUI results in significant consequences including financial, emotional, and personal ones. You can go to jail, have your license suspended, pay hefty fines, lose your job, pay much higher car insurance premiums – the list goes on and on. Due to the serious repercussions, many people ask their DUI attorney: Can I appeal my DUI conviction?

The answer is yes, but it is not that simple. There are only certain circumstances that will allow you to appeal. The best way to find out if you qualify for one of these circumstances is to contact Law Office of Michael L. Fell at (949) 585-9055 and request a free legal consultation.

Legal Grounds for Appealing a DUI Conviction

You do not have an automatic right to appeal your DUI conviction – you must have legal grounds. This is true whether you were convicted of a misdemeanor or felony DUI. You will need to show that the police, D.A., or your own attorney made mistakes that prevented you from having a fair trial. If you believe that the judge made an error in their judgment of the law, this could also be grounds for appeal.

You may also be able to appeal if you can show there was jury misconduct. For example, if a member of the jury talked to other members of the jury outside of deliberations, or if they did their own research into the case, then you may have grounds for appeal.

What to Expect When Appealing a DUI Case

If you believe you have a right to appeal your DUI conviction then your first step is to contact an attorney who can help. We suggest you work with a different attorney than your initial DUI attorney. Why? Because your trial lawyer may have missed strategies that could have prevented conviction, which your new attorney may be able to find and use to secure your appeal.

The first step when you work with a DUI attorney is to meet with them to talk about your case. They will go over the case, look at the police report, review tests that were conducted, read the statement you made to the police, look at trial testimony, and more. If they find that there is a reason for appeal, then they can file the paperwork with the right court and move forward.

In some cases, you may not have grounds for an appeal but you could have grounds for expungement or other post-conviction relief options. This doesn’t entirely clear your record but it could mean an end to the prolonged consequences of your case. If you believe you have grounds for an appeal, expungement, or other legal remedy, contact Law Office of Michael L. Fell at (949) 585-9055 for a free legal consultation.