A criminal DUI case in Torrance can result in the order of restitution if the offense involves a collision or traffic accident in which someone other than the defendant was injured. The Law allows for broad recovery in these types of cases. The Judge is compelled to order restitution as part of any sentence.

One of the interesting issues that arise is does a defendant have to pay the attorney fees of a victim injured in the accident? The answer is yes. Let’s assume one is accused of drunk driving stemming from a serious motor vehicle accident with injury. The victim goes out an retains a lawyer for the civil case and collects a large settlement from the accused’s insurance company, for the sake of this discussion, $300,000.00. Later, the defendant pleads guilty in criminal court and restitution is ordered. As part of that the victim can recover attorney’s fees because the law firm recovered the economic loss for the victim. The fact that the victim signed a release for settlement does not bar him or her from getting the lawyer’s fees back in the criminal case as part of mandatory restitution.