Court representation

Convicted Driver Insurance

Arnold

New Member
I run a small construction company. One of my employees was caught drink driving last week following an accident. No one injured. He blew 61 mg. He is summoned to court next week 17[SUP]th[/SUP] April. He’s been very stupid, no question.
He is an extremely competent member of our team and his work involves travelling between our sites daily – driving is integral to his job.
As his employer:
Can I write a character assessment for the court to consider, so the court sees a rounded assessment of the person in front of them?
Or can I appear as a character witness for the same reasons?
He supports his family in a rented flat on a single wage. Can he get legal aid to engage a solicitor to represent him? If so can the court case be delayed to allow time for preparation?

Any advice would be gratefully accepted.
Arnold Ltd
 
You can certainly write a character reference on his behalf but the court will be very unlikely to have any capacity to hear directly from you on the day. References for cases of this type are dealt with in writing as this is a summary offence that will be listed in a block alongside a number of other cases of a similar type in the morning list. Your employee will have time designated to his case individually but that time will be limited.

Legal aid is only available for a case of this type where there is a risk of a prison sentence being imposed. There does not appear to be any risk of that in these circumstances given that the reading of 61µg of alcohol per 100ml of breath would see him liable for a ban of between 17 and 22 months together with either a fine or a community order. The court would also not usually be prepared to delay proceedings to facilitate legal representation on a guilty plea and any representation would have to be on a privately paid basis. You can contact a specialist to discuss options for representation on 0333 200 9856
 
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