Lawyers are respected in the community for a reason. The degrees they attain require years of study, and their education is a lifelong commitment. They must keep abreast of changes in laws that occur daily, regardless of how minute or complex those changes are, to be able to answer legal questions in Michigan and give general information about the legal system in Michigan.
However, many resources are available for residents to research some of the answers to their legal questions on their own , although consulting with a professional in person or online would be the smartest move.
Resources for Legal Questions in Michigan
If you don’t know where to even begin, these top websites for legal questions in Michigan will help guide you.
Michigan Supreme Court
The Michigan Supreme Court offers the Michigan One Court of Justice website.
The site includes a wealth of information for the general public, legal community, media and court staff.
Regarding the information for the general public specifically, some of the information and links the website provides includes:
- Court forms
- E-filing
- Foster Care Review Board
- Friend of the Court
- Learning Center
- Michigan laws
- Michigan legal help
- Trial court locations
The website includes cases, opinions and orders search option, which takes users directly to the Michigan Legislature website, and other education and reference links.
Michigan Legal Help
The Michigan Legal Help website was created to help people who have to handle simple civil legal questions without a lawyer.
The site offers a variety of self-help tools, including information about family issues such as divorce and child custody; protection from abuse, such as stalking, domestic violence and personal protection orders; housing, such as landlord/tenant matters; and individual rights, such as emancipation of a minor, among other resources to answer legal questions.
In the event that a lawyer is needed to help answer legal questions in Michigan, it also provides links to help residents find a lawyer.
Super Lawyers
According to its website, Super Lawyers is a rating service of outstanding lawyers from more than 70 practice areas who have attained a high-degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. The selection process includes independent research, peer nominations and peer evaluations.
“Super Lawyers Magazine” features the list and profiles of selected attorneys and is distributed to attorneys in the state or region and the ABA-accredited law school libraries. Super Lawyers is also published as a special section in leading city and regional magazines across the country.
Residents who need help to answer their legal questions in Michigan can browse the site for the ideal lawyer based on the city, law firms, names of the attorneys, and the practice areas.
Resources for Crime Victims in Michigan
Several websites are available to assist crime victims in Michigan, including Michigan.gov, courts.mi.gov, and legislature.mi.gov.
Agencies available to answer legal questions and provide other assistance include crimevictimfoundation.org and firststep-mi.org.
County websites are ideal resources as well. Washtenaw County, for example, has the Crime Victims Rights handbook posted on its site.
A variety of mental health and rehabilitation resources are available throughout Michigan, such as the Macomb County Crisis Center.
Resources for defendants’ legal questions in Michigan
Lawyers.com is among the resources that can answer legal questions regarding someone’s arrest. The website provides a forum for users to ask questions, and the site explains what happens after someone has been arrested. In a previous blog post from Detroit Bail Bonds, you can also find a brief overview what to expect if you or a loved one is arrested in Detroit, or anywhere else in Michigan.
It provides a specific page for answers to legal questions in Michigan, including resources to obtain lawyers in Michigan based on specific issues and a variety of informational links, and it explains the criminal process in Michigan.
It breaks down, for example, what happens during the booking process after an arrest. First, at the police station or jail, fingerprints and photographs are taken. You are then held in a cell until you are taken before a judge or magistrate, which is when bail or bond issues are addressed.
Bail is a financial arrangement that a bail bonding agency will make on behalf of the person who was arrested. A bond is a surety that the full bail amount will be paid, but some courts will accept either the full bond or a 10 percent cash down payment for the release of a suspect.
The bail bond may vary from individual to individual depending on the severity of the crime, the personal history of the offender, his mental condition, prior convictions and, most importantly, his risk of flight, according to the Detroit Bail Bonds agency’s Guide to the Bail Bond Process.
The individual may post the bond himself or through money from family and friends, or he can choose to go the route of a bail bondsman.
If you are charged with a crime, you will return to court for an arraignment hearing, at which time a plea is set. Afterward, you may be offered a plea bargain from the prosecutor, or your case may proceed to trial.
It is important to find lawyers and a bail bondsman in the local area, as they are more knowledgeable about specific laws in the various communities and would be better able to answer your legal questions.
There were nearly 418,500 crimes committed in Michigan in 2014, for example, and these crimes vary greatly. Each case is different, and someone experienced in the community where the alleged crime occurred would be best suited to address the issues.
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