How do I determine that the lawyer I am hiring is really a lawyer?

I live in New Jersey and I am seriously considering hiring a lawyer for my traffic ticket. How do I know if the lawyer is real and not a scam artist?

Call your local Bar Association. No, not the one that sells liquor.

I assume lawyers would have a license or registration number from their governing bodies. Check what official licenses your lawyer has and also try searching on the net for past references etc of that lawyer. Also I suggest going to legal networking sites like www.lawyerahead.com and post if anyone has used that lawyer before in your area.

See if he is on one of these lists:

http://www.statelawyers.com/AttorneyDirectory/Index.cfm/StateID:30

http://www.njsba.com/attorneyDirectory/index.cfm?fuseaction=attorneyDirectory

Call the New Jersey Bar Association listed in your Yellow Pages or look in there for his ad.

Contact the New Jersey Bar Association. They will have all the info on any attorney for that state...