Not worth it for minor traffic offenses IMO. I was pulled over a few months ago on the turnpike in St. Lucie County for speed. It was a case where I was traveling in a pack of vehicles, I was the last one in the group, all the vehicles in that pack were traveling at the same speed, there was a police officer parked in the median and as we passed, I was the easiest one for him to pick off and target since I was in the rear.
According to the ticket the officer gave me, the fastest way to deal with it would've been to simply pay a fine of $256.00 to the county. A few days after I got this ticket, my mailbox was flooded with about 10 offers from various traffic ticket lawyers and attorneys, all of whom made various promises if I'd hire their services. One in particular was from Somera & Associates, it advertised rates from $25. I called them, the guy I spoke to (Brian) seemed decent and explained the process. Their charge for the service I needed would be $79 and they'd try and have the ticket dismissed completely; If that wasn't possible, they'd work to try and get the best possible outcome.
I called and spoke to a few other clinics and lawyers who'd sent me ads for their services, but decided to stick with Somera, primarily because they didn't seem to make any bloated sales pitches and seemed to state that they'd work the hardest to resolve my case and get the best possible outcome for me as their client. I called back that afternoon and spoke to a woman who asked for my credit card number for the payment, and she also requested my e-mail address so she could send the receipt letter. She asked that I reply to her as well with a copy of my citation. A day or so later, I'd still not received any correspondence, so I followed up with another call. I finally got the e-mail with my receipt and a letter which promised they'd give my case the utmost personal attention. I replied with a copy of my citation as promised.
That was the last I heard from them for nearly 4 more months, when I got an e-mail and a letter saying that I wouldn't have to go to traffic school and would receive no points, but I would have to pay court costs in the amount of $263.
So when I was given this ticket, I was given the option of paying $256 to the county and that would be the last of it. Instead, I hired this law firm for $79, only to have to pay an additional $263 in court costs...So hiring Somera and Associates cost me a total of $342 vs. the $256 it would have cost to simply pay the ticket. Was it worth it?? You decide.
**UPDATE 4/22/15: I received a call this past Saturday from Jessica Somera. I was out of town, so I asked to speak with her after I returned. She phoned me back on Wed., explained that she'd read my review and wanted to explain a bit about the process, how not all counties charge the same court fees, some are more willing to dismiss cases than others, etc. I promised her I'd update my review and I truly appreciate her calling me and I can tell that she has pride in her family's business and is passionate about what she does, not to mention she was very nice when she spoke to me. That said, my biggest issue is that it cost me nearly $100 more to hire this law firm and pay court costs than it would've cost if I'd simply have paid the ticket outright and taken my chances with the points. Also, in my past experience with another traffic attorney (with a ticket I'd received in a different county a few years ago) the cost of the court fees and the attorney fees was a bit less than the cost of the outright fine. Again, I appreciate that Ms. Somera took the time to call me and she was very nice and simply wanted to ensure I was clear on the process, but in the end, the reason I went to an attorney was that I was hoping to pay less overall than the cost of simply paying the fine. read more