While you have a constitutional right to dispute a traffic ticket, and while you are permitted to represent yourself in doing so, there are many good reasons why you should not take this approach. Disputing a traffic ticket on your own can be a huge mistake.
The consequences of speeding tickets and other traffic tickets in British Columbia can include fines, demerit points, insurance increases, and driving prohibitions. To avoid facing these consequences not only do you need to have a good understanding of the various consequences of the Motor Vehicle Act but also the collateral consequences that often occur after a ticket is resolved.
You can beat a traffic ticket. But your chances of doing so are better when you have a lawyer assisting you. Lawyers who specialize in traffic tickets and driving charges are familiar not only with the consequences on the face of a ticket, but also different avenues of negotiation to try to minimize or avoid consequences.
For example, if you are concerned about the points, lawyers who specialize in driving cases can figure out alternative charges that do not have points associated with them, or out of court resolutions that help you to avoid the points.
If you represent yourself, you are relying on the knowledge and experience of the police to put you in the best position. The police do not have your best interests in mind the way a lawyer is ethically obliged to. Further, there are plenty of cases in which officers have been mistaken or misled disputants in court. A lawyer would know if the officer was wrong.
An experienced driving lawyer specializing in traffic tickets and driving offences is also best equipped to handle these cases by looking at the disclosure and identifying any potential defences.
For speeding tickets, we have obtained the same training that the police have received in laser and RADAR speed measurement, and in speed estimation and are able to identify any errors in police procedure and operation of the Laser or RADAR speed measurement devices. These defences can be used in a tactical way, either kept secret for trial or used to negotiate with the officer to drop the ticket based on a defect in their evidence.
An experienced traffic ticket lawyer can also help you with identifying any defences that appear on the face of the ticket. There are nuanced and specific rules in British Columbia for how tickets must be completed and how offences must be described. Minor errors, depending on where the error appears, may invalidate the ticket.
An experienced traffic ticket lawyer can help you with your defence of your traffic ticket case. That is why it is always best to hire a lawyer and not to make a mistake by trying to defend the ticket yourself.
