If you’ve already been to your initial appearance, chances are you’re going to your custody trial. If you haven’t hired an attorney yet, you can show up and ask for a continuance – but it’s risky. There is always a chance that the judge will move forward without granting your continuance.
Full Answer
If their clients agree, their requests for a continuance will normally be granted. To find and hire replacement counsel. Sometimes defendants wish to fire their lawyers mid-trial. Judges will hold a hearing on the request, and determine whether good cause supports the defendant’s request.
· I hired a attorney for criminal. Every time we have been in court he asked for continuance without letting me know. It has been 4 1/2 months and every time I have a meeting with him he tells me "oh sorry, I havent looked over your case", I do not know if this is why he keeps asking for a continuance.
Perhaps the most common reason for a continuance is when one side did not have enough time to investigate the case and analyze the evidence. Many defense attorneys, especially public defenders, can move only so quickly because they are representing many clients.
It should say why you need the continuance. Explain how you can better present evidence in your case if you have more time. Explain some of what you want to tell the court, in case you do not get a continuance. Explain why not getting the continuance will harm you or someone else.
Include a memo line with your case number and the caption of the case (i.e., John Smith vs. Jane Doe). Then, address the letter to the judge who is overseeing your case by writing "Dear Judge
Contact the Court if You Cannot Make the Hearing If you know ahead of time that you will not be able to make the hearing because of a conflict, you should contact the court as soon as possible. You may be able to reschedule the hearing to a date and time where you will be able to attend.
Judges are often asked to continue a hearing or a trial for these reasons: 1. At arraignment, to secure counsel. An arrestee’s first court appearan...
Prosecutors must bring a case to trial within the speedy trial window unless the defendant has waived time. If the defendant refuses to waive time...
Judges are normally very careful to document the evidence offered in support of the motion for a continuance, and their reasons for granting or den...
1. I’ve waived time and need more time to prepare my case. What do I have to tell the judge to get the trial date pushed back? 2. If the prosecutor...
Asking for a continuance on the grounds that the prosecutor is not prepared is typically a non-starter.
Typical Reasons Why Defendants Ask for Continuances. Judges are often asked to continue a hearing or a trial for these reasons: At the arraignment, to secure counsel. An arrestee’s first court appearance is often the arraignment, when the judge reads the charges and asks for a plea.
To prepare for trial. States typically provide defendants with a minimum amount of time between entering the plea and going to trial. But a defendant has a right to adequately prepare defense (which includes the right of counsel to prepare).
Requests (called “motions”) for a continuance can be made up to and including the sentencing hearing. But states typically narrow the reasons for which a defendant or a prosecutor may ask for a continuance. These scenarios are explained below.
If the defendant refuses to waive time in response to the prosecutor’s request for a continuance, the case can be dismissed. And even when the defendant has waived time, the prosecutor must obtain the court’s approval for a continuance.
Occasionally, defendants will ask for a continuance on the grounds of prejudicial publicity. Whether that motion will be granted depends on the facts of each case. Typically, judges will inquire as to how widespread and negative the publicity actually is; whether a change of venue (to another location within the court system) will solve the problem; whether questioning potential jurors about their exposure will result in a taint-free jury; and whether admonishing the jury to disregard such publicity, or even sequestering them, will alleviate the effects. Often, the effect of pretrial publicity can be mitigated using one or more of these approaches.
Similarly, defendants who are without counsel but facing a preliminary hearing are often given a continuance to hire a lawyer (a preliminary hearing is a “mini-trial,” in which the prosecutor presents enough evidence to convince the judge that “there’s a case here,” and that the matter should be set for trial).
Attorneys often request continuances because their work on other cases has prevented them from devoting the necessary time to the case at hand. Courts usually allow some leeway in these situations, especially for court-appointed defense attorneys. Time for the defense.
A continuance is a grant of additional preparation time before or during a trial. Either the prosecution or the defense can request a continuance, and sometimes even the court can order a continuance of its own accord.
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Because continuances delay the resolution of a case , judges typically frown upon them. It's usually only when the defendant's rights might otherwise be violated that a court will grant a continuance request. Absent a law or constitutional right to the contrary, judges have broad discretion to determine whether to issue a continuance.
Perhaps the most important consideration for a judge is whether the party requesting the continuance has been diligent —in other words, whether the party put in sufficient effort. Parties must be active in reviewing evidence, interviewing witnesses, issuing subpoenas, and testing forensic evidence.
As always, if the defendant's negligence contributed to the surprise, the judge can reject the continuance request. Additionally, a court usually won't grant a continuance where the surprise testimony comes from one of the defendant's own witnesses.
For example, the prosecution changing the alleged date of a crime might justify a continuance to allow the defendant to prepare an alibi for the date in question.
You should ask your lawyer why he asks for continuances. You can explain to your lawyer that you want to go forward, but you should really have a conversation with him and listen to what he has to say. I understand you want your case over with, but frequently continuances are a good thing...
The decision to continue your case is not really up to you. The rules give your attorney fairly wide latitude in handling a case. And what the client wants isn't always required. The attorney gets to dictate tactics, you don't.
Every night before I retire each night, I pray "God, deliver me from Criminal Defendants who want immediate closure!"
In almost every case, continuances benefit the defendant and burden the prosecutor. Your lawyer knows this; so does the prosecutor. Why do you want to second-guess your lawyer? Who has the better state of information and knowledge?
Steps to Requesting a Continuance. 1. Have a Good Reason. The first thing you will need to request a continuance is a valid reason. This reason could be scheduling conflicts or the inability to acquire necessary documents before the assigned date. You will be required to explain your reason in your request.
Another way to continue a hearing is to make a verbal request to the judge, which usually occur s at the beginning of the court session. Obviously, this will only work if you are able to physically attend the hearing, at least briefly.
Babs24 on December 31, 2019: Never asked for a continuance before. I need to write a letter by Jan 2nd to the prothonary requesting a continuance because I can no longer afford my current council. I need to find someone with lower hourly fees.
Not only do you need to inform the Plaintiff of your request to continue the hearing, but you'll also need to let the court know that you did so. In most cases, you will file the Proof of Service along with the request.
The information you require to file a Request for Continuance, including your docket number, can be found on the original subpoena that was issued to you. If you no longer have access to that document, the information can be accessed through the court clerk.
or child care. For your own sake, never request a continuance unless you are certain rescheduling your own schedule is impossible. You may find that acquiring a first continuance is not difficult, however, the court will likely be less accommodating for subsequent requests.
Make certain you cannot resolve the scheduling conflict on your own before requesting a continuance. The court will ultimately decide whether or not your request will be granted based on the reason you have provided. Scheduling conflicts can be a valid reason to issue a continuance.
Either party involved in a court case may request a continuance. This is done by filing a Motion to Continue with the court. When the court receives a Motion to Continue, it may, at its discretion, approve or deny the motion. Typically, the court approves motions that cite valid reasons for pursuing continuance.
A continuance is an extension to the time granted to the parties involved in a legal proceeding before or during their trial. The time that individuals engaged in court cases have to prepare their cases and negotiate deals and settlements is crucial to the court’s ability to reach a just outcome, which is why nearly all legal processes in the United States are governed by specific deadlines.
Generally, courts are more reluctant to grant continuances in criminal cases than in civil cases because the Sixth Amendment to the United States Constitution grants individuals facing criminal charges the right to a speedy trial. In a civil case, there is no similar right, as the outcome of a civil case is typically compensation for the injured party, rather than justice for a victim or an accused defendant.
In a civil continuance, the extra time might be necessary for one of the parties involved to accurately determine the extent of the damages he suffered or, if it’s a high-profile case, to manage the pre-trial publicity he faces related to the case. Criminal continuances may be granted for this reason as well or for reasons such as the sudden appearance of a witness with key testimony to support the prosecution or the defendant.
Common lengths of time for case continuances are six to eight months, but it may take longer or shorter, depending on the case.
A case may be postponed as many times as the court deems it to be necessary. As long as there is an acceptable reason to grant a continuance, the court may grant it and prolong a legal proceeding.
This could be because a judge or prosecutor is ill, because the evidence provided has been found to be false, or because one or more proper court procedures, such as filing case-related documents by their deadline, have not occurred. A case may be postponed as many times as the court deems it to be necessary.
The filing of a motion for continuance should, however, never be routine or taken lightly. They should never be filed the week before the trial setting, when denial of the motion leaves us no opportunity to cure. The days when the granting of a motion for continuance could be taken for granted are gone. And the consequences of filing a motion ...
So, here are some of the things the rules say about motions for continuance under these circumstances:• The motion for continuance shall be not granted unless it shows “sufficient cause” and is supported by an affidavit; If the “sufficient cause” is a lack of certain testimony, the affidavit must show: the missing testimony is material;
And the affidavit supporting a motion for summary judgment is almost always from the lawyer handling the case.
If the “sufficient cause” is a lack of certain testimony , the affidavit must show: the missing testimony is material; the nature of the materiality; the lawyer exercised due diligence to try to get the testimony; the exact “due diligence” used by the lawyer and why it failed; and if this is not the first motion then, the testimony is not available from another source. If the “sufficient cause” is a lack of a witness (you figure out whether what you are missing is a witness or testimony), the affidavit must show: the name and address of the witness; and what you expect approved by this witness (which seems a lot like a lack of testimony).
Oh yeah, and the judge is at a judicial conference and his docket has been assigned to a series of three visiting judges so that, even after a strike by both sides, there will still be a judge to try the cases and clear the docket. Well, what we do is file a motion for continuance.
After all, there are older cases ahead of it on the docket, including one with a special setting. Besides, the opposing lawyer is just as unprepared as you are and he has two other cases set that same week in other courts, both of which are older than this case.
You are now going to trial under circumstances where justice cannot be done, if one believes your affidavit. When you lose that case because of a lack of preparation and the lack of evidence, the resulting judgment against your client is the product of a lack of justice, if one believes your affidavit.
If your attorney had refused to agree to the continuance because you did not agree, your attorney would look bad to the court and to opposing counsel. It is entirely possible that there was a perfectly good reason why the other attorney needed the matter set over. So your attorney could show up and charge you money to object to the continuance, which would have been granted anyway and you would need to...
A continuance request is such a situation.