• Skip to primary navigation
  • Skip to main content
  • Skip to primary sidebar
  • Skip to footer

Mass. RMV Lawyer

Massachusetts License Suspension Appeals

  • DUI Suspensions
    • Massachusetts Drunk Driving Law
    • Mass. Breathalyzer & Chemical Test Refusal Suspensions
    • Breathalyzer Refusal Suspension Appeals
    • Massachusetts Breathalyzer Refusal Rights & Penalties
    • Breathalyzer Refusal / Chemical Test Refusal
      • Suspension Appeals for Constructive Breathalyzer Refusals
      • Chemical Test Refusal License Reinstatement Hearings
      • Appealing a 5 year Chemical Test Refusal Suspension
    • 2nd Offense DUI Suspensions
    • Hardship Licenses for 3rd Offense DUI
    • Melanie’s Law
      • Ignition Interlock Device Reinstatement Procedures
      • Rolling Re-test Violations in Massachusetts
      • Problems with Ignition Interlock Devices
      • Ignition Interlock Circumvention
      • Ignition Interlock Device Removal
      • Ignition Interlock Device Lockouts
      • Ignition Interlock Device Violations
      • Check your Eligibility for a Mass. Hardship License
    • Top MA Hardship License Lawyer
    • OUI Child Endangerment License Suspensions
    • OUI Defense
    • Tougher Mass. OUI & other Motor Vehicle Laws Proposed
    • Check your Eligibility for a Mass. Hardship License
    • Traffic Tickets
      • Request for Detailed Driving History Record
      • Speeding Citation Suspensions
      • Check your Eligibility for a Mass. Hardship License
  • Out of State & NDR Suspensions
    • A21 – DUI of Alcohol Suspensions
    • National Driver Register (NDR) Revocations
    • The National Driver Register (NDR)
    • Out of State DUI Suspensions for Mass. Residents
    • Out of State DUI Convictions
    • Mass. DUI Consequences for Non-Residents
    • Out of State License Revocations
    • A New York DWAI or DUI and your Massachusetts License
    • New York DWAI Suspensions
    • The National Driver Register & Out of State License Suspensions
    • National Driver Register License Suspensions
    • Out of State Suspensions & DUI Convictions
    • The Consequences of Getting a DUI in NH or Other States
    • Out of State DUI Suspensions & the Mass. RMV
  • Immediate Threat Suspensions
    • What is an Immediate Threat Suspension?
    • I wrote the Book on Immediate Threat Suspension Appeals
    • Appeal your Immediate Threat Suspension
    • Immediate Threat Indefinite Revocations
    • Immediate Threat Revocations Are Constitutional
    • Massachusetts Immediate Threat Indefinite Revocations
    • Immediate Threat Indefinite Suspensions
    • Complaint Immediate Threat Indefinite Suspensions: MV Violation Required
    • Elderly Drivers & “Complaint Medical” or “Immediate Threat” Suspensions
    • Fatal Accident Preliminary Suspensions
    • Updated Immediate Threat Information
    • Negligent Operation
  • Board of Appeal
    • Appeal your License Suspension
    • Massachusetts RMV Board of Appeal
      • Surcharges, Citations, & Insurance
    • The Division of Insurance Board of Appeal
    • Board of Appeal Hearing
    • Get Your Suspended MA License Back
    • Get a Hardship License from the Mass. RMV or the Board of Appeal
    • Board of Appeal & RMV Hearings: Your Last Chance to Present Evidence
    • Not Hiring a Lawyer for your Board of Appeal Hearing is not Smart
    • Hardship License Appeal Process
    • Check your Eligibility for a Mass. Hardship License
    • More Board of Appeal Information
  • CDL Revocations
    • CDL License Suspension Penalties
    • Commercial Drivers License Suspensions
    • Mass. CDL Suspensions & Disqualifications
    • CDL Disqualifications & Revocations
    • Mass. DUI Commercial Drivers License (CDL) Penalties
    • Tough Penalties for CDL Holders in Massachusetts
    • Latest CDL News & Information

Not Hiring a Lawyer for your Board of Appeal Hearing is not Smart

You are here: Home / Blog / Not Hiring a Lawyer for your Board of Appeal Hearing is not Smart

Posted on November 16, 2010

empty Board of Appeal CourtroomThis morning I received this e-mail from a gentleman who is looking for help, after trying to represent himself before the Board of Appeal and losing twice. Unfortunately, there’s nothing that I can do for him at this point and he will likely have to serve his entire suspension, with no hardship license. If he had contacted me before he represented himself and lost, I might have been able to help him and the result would likely have been different.

The old adage “he who represents himself as a fool for a client” definitely applies when it comes to hardship license hearings. The Registry is represented by a skilled and experienced lawyer who is an expert on the subject of RMV law an his function is to try to convince the Board to keep the suspension in effect and not grant a hardship license. Those seeking hardship licenses have the right to legal counsel and not exercising that right can have serious consequences.

————————–

I had my 2nd meeting with the Board of Appeals this week to try and obtain a hardship license (had my last one back in February). I’m currently serving a 2 year suspension which began in September of 2009. I was denied a hardship license.

Long story short, I got a DUI in Colorado while I was in college back in 2005 which was dismissed and dropped to a DWAI. I got a DUI last year in MA (I was charged with a first offense). No injuries or property damage or anything like that occurred in both instances. My DWAI in Colorado was automatically considered a DUI when it was transferred over to MA.

I’m not sure why I was denied. I meet all of the OUI Hardship criteria that the Mass RMV requires:

-I haven’t operated a motor vehicle since my suspension began
-The minimum amount of time has been served for hardship consideration
-Provided proof of 24D completion (ordered by the court to do this program)
-Provided letter from the courthouse stating that my probation has been completed
-Provided letter from employer showing the need for a hardship license
-Showed proof that public transportation cannot get me to where my job is located
-I have the Ignition Interlock Packet signed and completed

————————–

 

My only choice now is to go through the Superior Court to appeal the Boards decision. I should include that I represented myself both times I went up in front of the Board. Not sure if that had any influence on their decision. How do I go about appealing through the Superior Court?

Unfortunately, winning a hardship license appeal in Superior Court is next to impossible. I’ve never taken these cases, because they are a waste of my time and the client’s money. In reviewing the Board’s hardship license denial, the Superior Court is required to give due weight to the Board’s experience, technical competence, specialized knowledge, and the discretionary authority conferred upon it by statute. The Superior Court may not substitute its judgment for that of the Board. It may not dispute the Board’s choice between two conflicting views, even though the court would justifiably have made a different choice had the matter come before it de novo. The Superior Court has ruled that whether or not to grant a hardship license is a decision left to the Board’s sound discreton. Therefore, for all intents and purposes, the Board of Appeal is the “court of last resort” when it comes to hardship licensing. Going there without a lawyer and trying to appeal a denial in Superior Court is not advisable.

Related Articles

  • Massachusetts RMV Board of Appeal
  • The Division of Insurance Board of Appeal
  • Board of Appeal Hearing
  • Get a Hardship License from the Mass. RMV or the Board of Appeal
  • Board of Appeal & RMV Hearings: Your Last Chance to Present Evidence

Filed Under: Blog, Massachusetts Registry News

Primary Sidebar

Attorney Brian E. Simoneau
550 Cochituate Road, Suite 25
Framingham, MA 01701-4683 (map)
Call or Text: 508-656-0057
Fax: 508-302-0212

Contact Us

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Recent Posts

  • Thousands of DUI Convictions may be Reversed
  • Reinstate from an Indefinite Immediate Threat Revocation
  • Indefinite Complaint Regulatory Suspensions
  • The Ignition Interlock Operator’s Affidavit
  • Ignition Interlock Early Withdrawal Suspensions
  • Same Day RMV Hearings
  • Ignition Interlock Device Installation
  • The Work and Family Mobility Act
  • License Suspensions for Ignition Interlock Failed Start Violations

Let’s work together to get you back on the road, legally.

Contact us today regarding your Massachusetts License Suspension or Revocation.

Get Your License Back

Contact Us

  • This field is for validation purposes and should be left unchanged.

Footer

Disclaimer

Mass. RMV Lawyers is not a government agency or affiliated with the Massachusetts Registry of Motor Vehicles or any DMV. You can reach the suspension section of the Mass. RMV at 857-368-8200 and you can reach the Mass. Board of Appeal at 617-521-7794.

Contact

Brian E. Simoneau, Esq.
550 Cochituate Road, Suite 25
Framingham, MA 01701-4683
(508) 656-0057
attorney@rmvappeal.com

Recent Posts

  • Thousands of DUI Convictions may be Reversed
  • Reinstate from an Indefinite Immediate Threat Revocation
  • Indefinite Complaint Regulatory Suspensions
  • The Ignition Interlock Operator’s Affidavit
Call Us
Text Us

Copyright © 2023 · WordPress website customization by Anything Graphic. Nav Map