If you have received a traffic ticket and you care about your driving record, the best thing for you to do is to hire a traffic ticket lawyer. Our traffic ticket defense practice is part of our Municipal Court Litigation practice area, where we focus on aggressive defense where results matter. If you are facing a possible driver’s license suspension, suspension of your commercial driver’s license, Uber or Lyft network suspension or other potentially serious consequence, we can help you fight your traffic ticket and keep you driving.

Even if your ticket will not affect your livelihood, it may still be serious enough for you to hire a traffic ticket lawyer. Under Texas Law, most traffic citations are classified as misdemeanors punishable by fine only. However, convictions for traffic citations can and likely will result in increased insurance rates, driver’s license surcharges, and a possible license suspension. Furthermore, ignoring or forgetting these citations will lead to warrants being issued for your arrest.

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If you have an active warrant for a traffic violation, we may be able to get your warrant lifted and fight your traffic ticket for you so that you do not have to go to jail. Depending on what municipality the traffic ticket is in, we may be able to keep you from coming to court entirely.

How much is the fine for my traffic ticket?

Here is a list of common traffic offenses with maximum fine amounts:

• Speeding ($200)
• Reckless Driving ($200)
• Failure to Signal ($200)
• No Seatbelt Driver ($50)
• No Seatbelt Child ($200)
• Riding in Open Bed ($200)
• Red Light ($200)
• Stop Sign ($200)
• Passing School Bus ($1250 or $2000 if repeated)
• Passing Emergency Vehicle ($200)
• Use of Wireless Communication Device in a School Zone ($200)
• No Registration ($200)
• No Driver’s License ($200)
• Failure to Show License ($200)
• No Insurance ($500)
• Parking in Handicapped Space ($750)

Note that these are just the common offenses and certain factual situations could make the maximum fines higher. Furthermore, all courts assess court costs in addition to the fine amounts. It is not uncommon for the court costs to be equal to or even greater than the fine amount. Court costs do incur penalties and will be increased if a warrant has been issued on your case. Hiring a traffic ticket lawyer may reduce the amount of the fine that you would ultimately have to pay.

What happens if I miss my court date or forget my ticket?

When an officer writes you a citation they will require that you sign it as well. If you do not sign it the officer does have the authority to take you to jail. By signing the ticket you are promising to the court that you will appear to answer to the citation. Many times people are busy or forgetful and they fail to make this initial appearance. Once the court date has passed, a judge will issue a warrant for your arrest in order to ensure you answer for your ticket. This means if you are pulled over or contacted by the police for any reason the officer can take you to jail!

How can I do a warrant check?

If you want to do a warrant check in Dallas, you can visit the Dallas Municipal Record Search page or the Dallas Warrant Search page. However, these links only cover Dallas, and they may not reflect the most recent or complete records.

Should I take a deferred probation or deferred adjudication offer?

Taking a deferred offer is still an admission of guilt, and this may not necessarily be a good thing. There may be a way to fight and win your case without admitting guilt, and this is exactly what a traffic ticket lawyer will need to look at. Every case is different, and the specific facts of your case will need to be analyzed by a lawyer to determine what is your best bet.

What can I do if I have a warrant?

If the court has issued a warrant for your arrest you have a few options of releasing the warrant. You can contact the court and ask to pay the ticket and court costs; this will result in a conviction on your record. You can pay the full or double the amount of the ticket and court costs, whichever the court requires. Alternatively, Texas attorneys are allowed to write bonds for clients without either of you paying the court any money. This is a promise to appear in court as your attorney. Your attorney will be responsible for showing up and representing you on that case after he writes your bond. Once your warrant has been lifted, the court will assign you a new court date and the case can then be disposed of.

Can you lift a warrant for a traffic ticket?

Yes, a traffic ticket attorney can lift a warrant for a traffic ticket in most circumstances. If you just pay the ticket, you will be convicted. Hiring an attorney to write a bond for you will allow you to fight the traffic ticket without paying the ticket and without admitting guilt.

Can an attorney write a bond for a traffic ticket warrant?

Yes, in Texas, attorneys are allowed to write bonds. Not all attorneys do this, but many traffic ticket attorneys do.