Criminal Attorney: During Arraignment

Right to have an Attorney
During the arraignment at the criminal court, the person charged with a crime gets to know the charges framed against him. The right to have a lawyer is provided to the accused during the arraignment.

Hiring Criminal Defense Attorney
The accused person can hire his own defense lawyer if he can afford it. Otherwise a criminal defense lawyer will be appointed by the court from free lawyer organizations like the Assigned Counsel Plan in New York or the Legal Aid Society. In case there is not enough time for the accused to appoint his criminal defense attorney during arraignment, the criminal court judge will appoint one to represent the accused only during the arraignment. However thereafter the person has to arrange for his criminal defense lawyer to represent him at the court. In the event of the accused person not being satisfied with the performance of the appointed defense lawyer, he can approach the judge for a new lawyer or can hire another private defense attorney to represent him. Criminal defense attorney once appointed can only be changed if the judge is satisfied about the cause for change and permits the same.

Bail Conditions
In the criminal court during arraignment, the judge is usually requested by the district lawyer to either remand the convict to custody or to grant bail. The criminal defense attorney argues the case of the defendant against the district lawyer (the prosecutor) and tries to get bail for his client. After hearing the arguments from both sides, the judge decides on the conditions for granting bail to the defendant. Conditions for bail do not remain static and may vary according to the future circumstances. Appearance at the trial court by the defendant at stipulated intervals and representing his case through his criminal defense attorney are necessary after release from prison on bail. Here again the criminal defense lawyer advises him about change of court hearing date if any.