I have to make a third appearance just to resolve a simple traffic ticket. What is going on?

Hi, my name is Heather Ford, and I am a traffic attorney based out of New Orleans also known as the traffic ticket lady. Sometimes, I talk to people who have had to go to court many times in an effort to get their traffic ticket resolved, and they are struggling to understand why they have to keep making court appearances. You may be in a similar situation and I can thoughts on what might be happening.

Specifically, let’s focus on traffic court appearances in New Orleans. If you decide that you want to fight a New Orleans traffic ticket and want to go to trial, you can expect that you will probably have to make three court appearances to actually get a result.

What happens at these three appearances? First, you will have an initial court date where you come in and actually set the traffic ticket. You don’t have to come on the date of the ticket. You can come before the date listed on the traffic ticket. As for the date on that actual ticket itself, that’s called an “appear-by” date, so you come in and set it with the clerk’s office whenever the traffic ticket has been entered in the system. That’s your first visit.

Then, you can come in for your second court date, which is your actual trial date, and that will be your opportunity to talk to the city attorney’s office. Let’s say you talk with the assistant city attorney but can’t come to an agreement, so now you’re ready to go to trial. Ideally, you probably want a trial that day, but it’s a very real possibility that you are going have to come in for one more court date, because the court will normally grant each side at least one continuance.

A continuance means that the city is not yet prepared to go to trial, so they request a continuance. You might object, but the court’s response is usually to the effect of, “If you had wanted a continuance, we would give you one as well, so we will grant their continuance.” The court is very inclined to give both sides that courtesy. The continuance would cause you to have to return to court for a third visit.

So, this is all something to keep in mind and prepare for if you feel like you do not want to pay a ticket but would prefer to go to trial for it. Be prepared with the understanding that going to court about your traffic ticket is a process, and you will likely have to make a few appearances to see it through.

If you have any questions about a traffic ticket or a suspended license, I’d be happy to help. Shoot me a text or you can schedule that free strategy session at trafficticketsnola.com.