Michigan Criminal Defense Lawyer Blog
Winning back your Michigan driver’s license always sounds like a great idea after you’ve lost it. For anyone whose license has been revoked by the Michigan Secretary of State after 2 or more DUI’s, life is hard because getting around is hard. Still, people manage to find a way to at least get by, even if that means not being able to get or take a better job because of transportation issues. At some point, just about everyone hops online to find out what it takes to get back on the road. For a Michigan driver’s license restoration lawyer like me, the process seems simple because I have gone through it thousands of times. For the person just trying to figure out what to do, however, it seems like a lot. In fact, the more you look, the more complex getting your license back seems. In this article, which is more about motivation than information, I want to make clear that with the right help, you can safely navigate through this legal jungle and be able to put a valid license back in your wallet.
Sure, the license restoration or clearance process in Michigan involves a lot. The thing to remember is that it’s never going to get easier. In fact, the longer you wait, the harder it will become. Given what I call the “million little rules” that govern each facet of a driver’s license restoration appeal, it is easy to just keep reading and reading and getting stuck in what’s called “the paralysis of analysis.” In the real world, I often find that clients get really motivated to start the license appeal process for employment reasons. Sometimes, an employer really needs a current employee to get his or her license back. I’ve even had employers pay my fee! Other times, a person cannot accept a particular job offer without a valid license. In some cases, a person has just had enough of the employment limitations imposed by not being able to drive. In all of these situations, the person has essentially thrown down the gauntlet and said, “Let’s go!”
If there is a lesson to be learned here, it’s that you ultimately get this done by simply starting the process. Once you start things in motion, they tend to take care of themselves. You can either sit there, in the “paralysis of analysis” mode and get nowhere, or you can pick up the phone and get things going. My office walks each and every client through all the steps necessary to get back on the road. The only preconditions are that you are legally eligible and genuinely sober. With those 2 things in hand, I guarantee that I will win your license back. The question then becomes, what are you waiting for? Let’s examine that a bit…
As hard as it is without a license, you somehow have gotten by. If you’re reading this, you’ve at least been able to survive; you haven’t died. Of course, just about everyone without a license could do better with the ability to drive, but the fact is that most people still manage a job, if not the kind they could have with a license, and they put together some kind of transportation system, even if that involves walking, riding a bike, getting rides or taking a bus. The idea of getting your license back sounds good, but once you start learning about the license appeal process, the whole idea of that “process” and all that goes with it can be very intimidating.
Most people know that you can’t just get your license back by “applying” for it. In some cases, a person will figure that he or she has been without it for so long that there must be some kind of shortcut or special consideration because of all that time. They soon learn that the driver’s license restoration process is the same no matter how long it’s been since you’ve driven or last had a valid license. No matter where you look, no one is going to lie and say getting it back is quick or easy. The point I’m making is that you can keep digging and researching and learning more and more until you’ve seen so much about rules and requirements and hearings and denials and everything else that the whole thing seems like just too much!
But it’s not.
It may seem like it, if you look at it the wrong way, but putting a valid license back into your wallet is as easy as taking the first step. Of course, you must be both legally and practically eligible, and you must be genuinely sober, but if you meet those simple requirements, then the only thing keeping you from driving again is you. Pick up the phone, call me, and let’s get going. I’ve helped thousands of people regain the joy of being able to drive again. If you qualify, I’ll do the same for you, and I guarantee it!
It really comes down to a simple choice: Do something, or do nothing. There is an old Chinese proverb that goes “The journey of a thousand miles begins with the first step.” While that is certainly true and sage advice for anyone with a task that needs to get done, getting your license back is not nearly as hard. Whatever else, the process is never going to get easier, so waiting does nothing more than just hold you back. When you think about it, what are you waiting for? Everything in your life will get better when you regain the ability to drive. Heck, just having a driver’s license for ID will feel good.
As complicated and difficult as the process of restoring your driver’s license can seem, it’s as simple as making up your mind to go from not having a license to having it back, and then picking up the phone to start the ball rolling. When you’re ready to get back on the road, call my office anytime Monday through Friday, between 8:30 and 5, at 586-465-1980. We’re here to help.