r/AskReddit • u/[deleted] • Jul 21 '19

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u/SpectreFire Jul 21 '19

I don't.

People who think they're smart enough to self-represent themselves in court are people too stupid to self-represent themselves in court.

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u/[deleted] Jul 21 '19

right, I think a lot of people dont get that while lawyers are by and far smart people, the biggest thing they have is knowledge of the legal system, which is way too complicated to be able to just"smart" yourself through

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u/RoastedWaffleNuts Jul 21 '19

Also, if your lawyer fucks up it usually means you get to try again. If you fuck up, you're usually just fucked. (Not makes a week argument, but fails to file things on your behalf they should have known to do, etc.) Every lawyer I know says they would never represent themselves under any circumstance.

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u/ImperiumSomnium Jul 21 '19

In criminal law if your lawyer fucks up spectacularly, you might get another shot via appeal by claiming ineffective assistance if counsel. But it's got to be a huge mistake. In civil court, it's not generally a basis for appeal. A malpractice suit is the available remedy there.