I live in the Boston area. What are the steps in obtaining an attorney on retainer?

That would depend on what type of attorney you are looking for.  If it’s for business, you would need one who practices in that area.  If it is for criminal defense, that would require a different expertise.  I assume you are not in custody waiting to get bailed out, so you have time to plan ahead.   By the way, what you are doing is the best way to shop for an attorney. If you invest some time and effort in your career, it will pay off in the long run.

Take a couple of days off and go to the local arraignment court where prostitution cases are assigned.  Pay close attention on how the defense attorneys handle their cases.  After each defendant is arraigned, the cases are assigned to a trial court room.  Go to any one of the court rooms where the defendant is being tried for prostitution.  If time permits, visit other prostitution trials.  The more you observe, the more you will know about the legal aspects of your profession.  You will undoubtedly pick up a wealth of information on how LE operates.  Make sure you pay close attention to LE when they testify on the stand.

After sitting in on a few trials, you will begin to see which attorneys are good, and the ones who are substandard.  Make sure you dress very conservatively and carry a three ring binder and a school type law book.  Those items can be purchased at any law school book store.  The three ring binder should have the name of the law school on the cover.  

When you feel confident enough, approach one of the prosecutors and tell him/her you are a law student and would like some information about prosecuting misdemeanors.  Of course, you will use the case they just tried for prostitution for the example.  Make a list of questions before you approach the prosecutor.  This is your chance to ask the real important questions about what action is needed to get a filing and subsequent conviction.

After chatting with a couple of prosecutors, I would approach a couple of vice officers in the court building.  Tell them you are a law student on an internship with the prosecutor’s office.  You can mention the name of the prosecutor you talked to the day prior, but not if he is working on the day you chat with the vice officers.

Tell them your present assignment is on the enforcement and subsequent prosecution of laws relating to prostitution.  If these are young cops waiting to testify, and you are a cute college looking girl, they will provide you with a wealth of information.  You might become a subject matter expert by the time your “self training” is over.  

The officers get very bored waiting to testify.  They would love nothing more than to entertain a pretty coed.  Act impressed with their stories, and amazed at the things they encounter when going after a prostitute.  The more interested you appear, the more they will tell you.  Don’t be afraid to ask questions.  Questions like, “What if you know for sure she is a prostitute, but she never mentions sex or money.  Is that a violation?”  Remember, you are a law student, not a provider, so be careful of the words and phrases you use.  Try to talk like a law student.

The third phase would be to talk to the prostitutes who are waiting for trial.   Ask them who they feel is the best attorney to handle prostitution cases.  Before long, one, two or three names will emerge as the best prostitution defense attorneys.

Call each of the top rated attorneys and schedule a meeting.  They charge by the hour, so an hour with each should do.  Tell them what you do for a living, and that you are in the process of selecting a defense attorney before you might get arrested.  An attorney cannot tell you exactly what to do to avoid arrest, if the act is criminal.  That would be obstruction of justice.  However, they are allowed to provide very valuable information on how the system works.  Take their business cards, and tell them they might be hearing from you someday.  Ask each one what to do if you get arrested in the middle of the night.  Find out if the attorney, or someone else will respond to the jail and bail you out.  You want that drill down pat before you start your practice.

It will take you a couple of days to obtain the information needed in order for you to operate relatively safely.  Two days of training is nothing compared to an arrest for prostitution?  If you obtain the information for yourself, you are much better off.  Most of what you hear and read on discussion boards is nothing more than baseless rumors which grow wilder each time they are passed along, not to mention the outright lies.  I wish you all the luck and prosperity in your chosen endeavor.  



-- Modified on 4/14/2003 6:13:11 PM

Doc, before we know it you're going to have her in law school for real...

I would try to talk you out of following that advice.  You can find out who the heavy weights are in your court area without making your face known to the prosecutors or the cops.  If you
get burned on this little charade they will be watching for you.
The best criminal attorneys in town may go for years without handling a pro case but they are still the ones with the clout in the prosecutors office.  The guys that are in there slugging it out with fifteen cases on one docket may use your case in a big exchange of cases between the prosecutors and the defense attorney.  Save your acting for when you really do get busted.
One bit of advice that is golden...make sure you dress conservatively if and when you are in court.  Not dowdy, not spinsterish, but conservative...tailored suit, hem should reach below the top of the counsel table, no platform spikes, very little make-up.  Stay out of the courthouse unless you have to be there.  Call the Metro desk of your local paper and ask who the biggest and the best are in the defense bar in their beat..they can tell you.  Check him/her out on line.  Be prepared to pay about as much as you ladies charge per hour...maybe a bit more for the really good ones...oh, and it is always incall.  Good luck..

As a criminal defense attorney, I can tell you that there is a lot of good advice in this note and some really bad advice.

I disagree completely about the suggestion that you say you're an intern with a particular prosecutor. I also disagree about saying you are a law student.

If you say these things, you will get caught. People talk. The people in these court houses are a small community. Over time, they get to know everyone really well. The person you tell about your internship is certain to talk to that prosecutor the next time around and mention his intern. If you're still around doing more research when that happens, you're cooked.

Telling one of these people that you're a law student likely will lead to disaster. The immediate chit chat questions, like, "oh, what courses are you taking?" and "who is your professor in Torts?" etc. will show you for the student that you aren't.

All of the rest of the advice in this note is excellent, but don't lie about who you are. There is no need to say anything -- the people will make their own assumptions about what you're doing and, if they ask, you can tell them the truth -- that you're interested in the system, you're doing some research, and you're working on an article (or some such lie that can't lead to troublesome questions).

No Ally McBeal hemlines. No Hello Kitty dateplanner. Just a sharp #2 in da bun.