CRIMINAL LAW

Coomber Rich has built a strong reputation in Criminal Law and we are known to have represented clients in numerous high-profile cases. Our practice extends to Basingstoke, London and across England and Wales.

We have a dedicated team of highly experienced professionals in various areas of Criminal Law. Whether you are charged with a serious crime or a minor offence, our dedicated team will guide you through and support you every step of the way.

We have successfully represented clients charged with very serious offences such as murder, firearms offences, large-scale fraud offences, armed robberies, money laundering and sexual offences.

We also have extensive experience in dealing with youths, vulnerable clients and we instruct well-known psychologists, psychiatrists and intermediaries where required. We work very closely with highly experienced barristers across London and the UK.

We will always check your individual eligibility for legal aid as a first step and notify you of this on enquiry.

We also deal with all aspects of motoring law under the Road Traffic Act 1988 and can provide fixed fees for this work.

DRIVING OFFENCES

Driving is an essential part of modern life for most people. The loss of a driving licence can be stressful, traumatic, life changing and financially disastrous. This is before the large fines imposed by the court and sometimes even a prison sentence. Getting experienced specialist legal advice early is essential to achieving your objectives and can sometimes avoid or reduce the stiff penalties for motoring offences.

Our team at Coomber Rich Ltd have vast experience representing clients who have been charged with motoring offences including motor manslaughter (usually death by dangerous driving), driving while disqualified, driving under the influence of drink and drugs, careless or inconsiderate driving, no insurance, failing to give the identity of the driver, using a mobile phone and speeding.

There are many ways we can argue to keep a driving licence:

We have successfully defended many road traffic cases by pleading not guilty and fighting cases at trial, for example, post driving consumption.

It is possible to appeal a disqualification from the Magistrates’ Court to the Crown Court.

It is possible to apply for early return of a driving licence after 2 years of a disqualification over 3 years in length.

It is possible to argue against the imposition of a disqualification due to “special reasons” relating to the offence which avoid points or a disqualification, for example; laced drinks, shortness of distance driven or a medical emergency.

Another argument against disqualification is that it would cause “exceptional hardship” which can be argued on a potential totting ban (accumulating 12 penalty points in a 3-year period).

Please note that trials, special reasons or exceptional hardship arguments are quite involved and time consuming so do not fall within our fixed fee scheme for magistrates’ court attendance, call us to get a quote.

Our office is in central Basingstoke, very near to the court, and we regularly appear at Aldershot, Guildford and Basingstoke magistrates’ court and in Winchester Crown Court. Instructing local solicitors has various advantages; 1) reduced travel time, expenses and costs. 2) we have local knowledge of these courts, their quirks and preferences, and have a professional reputation which is of inestimable value, and 3) we have a working relationship with those in the local criminal justice system at the courts, police and CPS and can therefore often resolve issues with a quick chat, rather than a stream of impersonal emails.

If you require representation for a motoring offence, contact us urgently for the best legal advice. We are happy to chat through your options on the phone without any charge.