Driving School
Start by visiting SafetyNC.org. Find the course that we told you to take, and click "View Course". Select your language preference, your preferred date to take the course (if applicable), enter your information and add the course to your cart. Then, simply pay for your course.
If you are still having trouble, watch this instructional video for additional help.
How to register for a driving school course varies depending on the course, but we will provide you with instructions and specifics for what course you need to attend and how to register via email. You can always view your notifications, outstanding tasks, and instructions from your MyCase portal.
While you are not always REQUIRED to complete a driving school course or community service hours, if we recommend it to you, it means that we know it is in your best interest to do so. If we recommend either, read our reasoning carefully. In some cases the best outcome is only possible with completion of community service or a driving school course. In other cases, it may be required for ANY reduction of your charges. This depends on the specifics of your case and will be explained in your email notifications. You can view all of your notifications as well as any outstanding tasks via your MyCase portal.
Unfortunately, you will not be able to reuse a driving school course that was already completed for a different case to satisfy the requirement for your current case. You must complete a new driving school course for your case. If you need details on which case to take and how to take it, view your MyCase portal to find the information we sent you.
In most cases, we will be able to seek a continuance for your case on your court date as long as you have already signed up for your course and provided us the date on which it's scheduled. We'll seek to have your case rescheduled to a future date so you can complete your course prior to your new court date.
Outcomes
No. We always strive for the best possible outcome in our client's cases, and we do not charge an additional fee for this.
The short answer is no, probably not. The District Attorney can continue your court date and require you to appear over and over while they attempt to find a date that is convenient for the officer. If you want to fight for a dismissal of your charge, we recommend having great documentation that supports your case and counters the officer’s statement and evidence. If it’s a matter of “he said, she said,” the court often sides with the officer of the law.
In most cases, it’s recommended to seek a reduction of your charge to a less severe citation. While it’s not a dismissal, a reduction could potentially avoid any license points and, most importantly, keep your North Carolina auto insurance rates from skyrocketing. Knowing the specific DMV and Department of Insurance rules that apply to your case, an attorney can seek the best possible outcome on your behalf.
No. Unfortunately, having typos or incorrectly filled out information on your citation is not typically grounds to have your case dismissed.
Maybe you’ve heard tales of NC traffic cases being dismissed because the citing officer didn’t have on their hat (or…. maybe you haven’t). Stories like the “hat dismissal” seem to come up whenever a ticket is mentioned, and although it may give folks who recently received a ticket some hope, usually they aren’t true. In North Carolina, the validity of a traffic ticket isn't contingent upon whether the officer was wearing a hat at the time of issuance. Challenging a traffic ticket based solely on the officer's hat status is extremely unlikely to have a desirable result.
Many years ago it did require that a driver would produce a document stating that they had a mechanical difficulty with their car to be eligible for a reduction in improper equipment in North Carolina. Now, improper equipment is used in situations where we negotiate on a client's behalf more as a point of leniency by the District Attorney and by the courts to give grace to a good driver.
It says basically you've got a good driving history and that the charge that you've received in this instance is not so severe that we can't give you a little bit of lenience. So in fact, now even though improper equipment still is a designation that can be used in the event that a mechanical difficulty or mechanical problem was occurring with your car, in most cases that we would resolve through our office a letter from a mechanic or a bill from a mechanic is not required to be eligible for a reduction to improper equipment.
While we do our best to minimize the impact of a ticket to your insurance, we cannot guarantee that your insurance will not increase at all. Your case with us may be dismissed/reduced enough to prevent license or insurance points from being accrued, but your insurance company may still raise your insurance simply because you were in an accident.
If a PJC is a good option in your case, we will let you know that when we give you your case review. Often times however, a PJC may not be a viable option, either because of the details of your case, or because there is a more beneficial option available.
For more information, please click here to learn all about the PJC
On Your Court Date
In most cases, you will NOT have to appear in court. We will appear on your behalf, and you can stay home and wait to hear how it went. However, in some cases your appearance may be required. If we notify you that you will need to be in court with your attorney, you must appear. Please refer to your notifications in your MyCase portal to see if you are required to appear for your case.
We will tell you if you need to be in court on your court date. Please refer to your notifications via your MyCase portal to see if you need to appear. If we say you do not need to appear, please do not appear. Unless requested by our office, appearing in court without notice may have a negative impact on the outcome of your case.
Rest assured, we will appear in court for you. If there are some extenuating circumstances, and we are unable to appear for your case, we will notify you as soon as possible, and make arrangements to have your case continued to a later date. Our attorneys are held to the highest ethical standard, not only by the State Bar, but also by our own rigorous internal review process. We are rigorous when it comes to hiring and our reviews on Google speak for themselves. Finally, you can be comforted by our 100% Satisfaction Guarantee.*
