Criminal Law
As soon as you are summoned as suspect by a criminal court, you should contact a lawyer. The lawyer will apply for your criminal record and prepare the hearing with you. The lawyer will also decide whether witnesses should be summoned to testify in your favour. During the proceedings, such lawyer will act as your defence counsel and will answer the prosecutor's accusation on your behalf.
Depending on the seriousness of the case, the competent court will be an investigation court (dealing with the less serious and simpler cases) or a Tribunal made up of three judges (for more complex and serious cases).
If you are taken into confinement or have to make a statement as an accused party but still have not received a summons, a lawyer's help is also highly advisable. In the "lightest" cases, the lawyer can, for example, ask for an out of court resolution to the case through an acquittal (conditional) or a compromise settlement. In the most serious cases, a copy of the criminal record can be requested at an early stage. The advantage that this assumes is that the defence will have time to look for witnesses and to take your statement into account or request opposing expert testimony for the technical report.
As soon as your first contact with the authorities occurs, for example after an arrest, the most prudent thing to do is to consult an attorney with a grasp of criminal issues as soon as possible. In case of retention of a driver's license, for example, the lawyer can request its return. In case of being called by an interrogator, the lawyer can explain your rights as a suspect in advance. In some cases, the lawyer can be present during the interrogation.
For urgent questions relating to Criminal Law, you can contact Gimbrère International Advocaten by telephone during out of office hours: 0031-6-20583101.
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19 - 05 - 2012
Peter Faber gives one-man-show at the office of Gimbrère International Lawyers
Tjaard Gimbrère and Peter Faber have known each other for years.