We take the hard work you’ve already done preparing motions for your clients and put it all  together in a beautiful book that can be used to guide, instruct, and recruit future clients. 

Give the book to existing and potential clients for free or sell it for a profit.

Introduction

If you are an attorney who has been in practice for some time, the odds are that you have written many pleadings, letters, memos, and other documents.  While most of these documents are case specific, much of what you write will contain generic information that is of interest to potential clients.

Criminal Defense Clients

Many criminal defendants are stuck in jail where they have plenty of time to worry about their cases, but lack the basic resources to assist in their defense. We help criminal defense attorneys help these defendants by writing books explaining the criminal process and the criminal justice system.  Our primary publication is known as the Handbook, but the specific title changes by county, and only one version of the Handbook is distributed in each county.

Handbook

To prepare the Handbook, we get core content from the contributing attorneys in the form of pleadings filed in prior cases, personal practice pointers, and information about the attorneys’ practice.  We remove defendant personal information from the pleadings, add relevant definitions and legal authority, add additional content of interest to defendants, and format the content for publication.  The end product is a 6″ x 9″ softbound book of around 150 to 200 pages. Sample pages from the Handbook may be found here:

• Table of Contents
• Definitions
• Answers to Bail Questions
• Help Your Attorney
• Replace Your Attorney
• Objections
• Order of Hearings
• Motions before Trial
• Sample Motions  <—- This is where we turn your valuable work into the heart of the book
• Legal Authorities
• Sample Letters

 

Frequently Asked Questions

 

May I see a copy of the book?

• Yes.  We show editions of the Handbook in person so that the target audience doesn’t see the book here first.  The book is written by the contributing attorneys, and we want to ensure that they receive as much credit as possible.

 

What is the name of the Handbook?

• With few restrictions, that is up to you.  At the top of this page you will see several sample cover designs using several different names for the book.  None of these designs have been used for any other edition of the book, and the book is only published once with any given name.  Further, the book is only published once in any given county.  You can name your handbook almost anything you like so long as it does not duplicate anyone else’s handbook or mislead anyone. 

 

How much will this cost?

• Prices start as low as a dollar per copy of the Handbook.  100 copies of the Handbook are printed and distributed each month in any given county.  More copies will be printed if requested.  The total cost of one copy of the handbook is $12, but this cost is typically divided between several attorneys and other contributors.  The primary author of the book decides which other attorneys, if any, are included as contributors, but a few suggested divisions are as follows:
  • Two Authors – Five attorney contributors.  The primary author is listed as the first on the cover, and the second author is listed second on the cover.  Five contributors are named on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.
    • Primary Author $4 per copy
    • Secondary Author $3 per copy
    • Contributors $1 per copy
  • Two Authors – No attorney contributors – Bond and insurance contributor.  The primary author is listed as the first on the cover, and the second author is listed second on the cover.  The attorney’s names are listed on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.  Bond companies are listed in the bond section of the book and on the back cover, and an insurance company provides a section about SR-22s and is listed on the back of the book.
    • Primary Author $4.50 per copy
    • Secondary Author $3.50 per copy
    • Bond companies $1.50 per copy
    • Insurance company $1.00 per copy
  • Two Authors – No attorney contributors.  The primary author is listed as the first on the cover, and the second author is listed second on the cover.  The attorney’s names are listed on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.
    • Primary Author $7 per copy
    • Secondary Author $5 per copy
  • One Author – Five attorney contributors.  The author is listed on the cover.  Five contributors are named on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.
    • Author $7 per copy
    • Contributors $1 per copy
  • Three Authors – No attorney contributors.  The authors are listed on the cover.  The attorneys are named on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.
    • First Author $5 per copy
    • Second Author $4 per copy
    • Third Author $3 per copy
  • Three Authors – No attorney contributors.  The authors are listed on the cover.  The attorneys are named on motions in the book and their practice pointers are sprinkled throughout the book.  Bond companies are credited in the bond section of the book and on the back cover.
    • First Author $4 per copy
    • Second Author $3 per copy
    • Third Author $2 per copy
    • Bond companies $1.50 per copy

 

Will I make a profit on this book?

• Generally, you should not expect to make a direct profit from book sales.  However, there are several ways you can make a profit from the book.
  • Direct sales.  You can sell the book at a profit, but it is highly unlikely that you will sell enough copies to make a profit this way.
  • New clients.  As the book is distributed in the jails, it is highly likely that the book will be passed around and read by multiple inmates, some of whom will hire you.  The books will then make their way into the prisons, so potential clients will begin calling about post-conviction relief.  If you don’t do post-conviction relief, you should associate with an attorney who does.  Further, the book should significantly increase your chances of being retained by clients who come to your office through other efforts because the book helps establish you as an authority in criminal defense.
  • Zero Investment.  The book can have multiple attorney authors and contributors and may also be sponsored by bail agents, insurance agents, private investigators, expert witnesses, or others wishing to target criminal defendants in their marketing.  The sponsor of the handbook in a given county may choose the contribution level for all of the participants in the handbook project; the suggested divisions described above are only suggestions.  A sponsor could creatively structure contributions so the sponsor has no investment or even makes a profit on each copy of the book, such as the following examples:
    • Creative Sponsorship One – Profit of $7 per copy plus the potential income from retained clients and book sales.
      • Sponsor as First Author $0 per copy
      • Second Author $4 per copy
      • Third Author $3 per copy
      • Four contributing attorneys $1.50 per copy
      • Two Bond companies $1.50 per copy
      • One Gang expert $1.50 per copy
      • One Cell Phone expert $1.50 per copy
    • Creative Sponsorship Two – Profit of $1 per copy plus the potential income from retained clients and book sales.
      • • First Author $5 per copy
        • Sponsor as Second Author $0 per copy
        • Third Author $3 per copy
        • Two Bond companies $1.50 per copy
        • One Insurance agency $1.00 per copy
        • One Forensic alcohol expert $1.00 per copy

 

Does this really work?

• It really works and really well.  After we chat about the book and answer all of your questions, we invite you to also chat with some of the attorneys who have written books with us.  It is with great sadness that we must say our long-time partner in book projects, J. Anthony “Tony” Bryan, passed away on May 20, 2020.  We helped Tony with two book projects:
  • Handbook for the Accused
  • Sex Registration Guidebook

 

How is the Handbook distributed?

• The participants in the project are expected to give one or more copies of the Handbook to each of their in-custody clients each time they see them in court or at the jail.  Additional copies may be given to out-of-custody clients, but experience shows that the books given to in-custody clients generate the best return.

 

Are there other benefits?

• There are many added benefits, a few of which are that each edition of the Handbook is heavily marketed on the Internet and the marketing contains links back to the authors’ and contributors’ web pages.  This increases web traffic for the authors and contributors.  We also attempt to arrange for the authors and contributors to give workshops at the local law library and other venues on topics such as expungements and Proposition 47.  These seminars usually received the full support of the local law library and the local public library system.

 

What if I don’t have enough motions to make a book?

• You can supplement your own motions with motions filed in other cases in your county, motions by contributing attorneys, motions researched by us, or other motions you may find; however, if you put your name on a motion in the book, it should be a motion you actually filed in a criminal case.  If you do not have enough motions of your own, we therefore suggest that you find enough contributing attorneys to provide enough motions to fill the Handbook.

 

Will you write all of the motions for me?

• No

 

Will you write all of the practice pointers for me?

• No

 

How do I find new clients by giving books to existing clients?

• Your client will share the Handbooks with other inmates and these inmates will share with even more inmates.  These inmates will see you as an authority and may retain or recommend you.  When a case is over, a client who is let out of jail will usually leave the Handbook at the jail where other inmates will continue to share it.  If the client goes to prison, he will generally either leave the book behind or will take it with him to prison where it will be seen by potential clients in need of writs or appeals.  Other contributors will also give copies of the Handbook to their clients, and these clients may be looking for other representation, especially if their existing attorney is court-appointed.

 

Do you write books besides the Handbook?

• Pleading books.  We have several legal books currently on the market, some of which may already be on your bookshelf.  Most of these books are specifically directed to attorneys and are extensively researched books of pleadings. If you have pleadings that you are especially proud of, we may include them in one of our books and give you credit for your contribution.
• Cooperatively written books. The Handbook is currently our only cooperatively written book in mass production.  We are working on templates for a paralegal handbook as well as a post-conviction relief book.  Contact us for information on either of these projects. 
• Sex Registration.  We are looking for one or two attorneys to help write a second edition of Sex Registration Guidebook.  Attorney J. Anthony Bryan was working on the second edition of the book, but he passed away in May of 2020.  The Sex Registration Guidebook project will require a significant investment of both time and money, but it will establish the authors as the leading authorities in the field.
• Entertaining inmate books.  We write books with short stories, puzzles, sudoku, and other matters of interest to inmates.  The books include extensive information about programs that may help inmates reintegrate into society.  These books are given to inmates at no charge.  Attorneys and others who sponsor these books are mentioned on the back cover of these books.  We expect these books to eventually be fantastic way for attorneys and others to advertise, but because of Covid and distribution problems, we cannot currently recommend these books as a good method to advertise.  The books are entertaining and helpful but probably not your best advertising option.  We are, however, happy to chat about them. 

 

Will you guarantee results?

• No.  We can guarantee that certain percentage of potential clients will call you.  That is easy because if you participate in the project and follow our methods, many potential clients will call you, but we cannot guarantee that they will hire you.  They may not hire you for may reasons, such as that your prices are too high, your reputation is too bad, you don’t schedule appointments in a timely manner, you don’t answer your phones, you don’t return calls in a timely manner, or you just have a bad personality.  We can lead a defendant to you, but we can’t make him hire.

 

Will you cap clients for me?

• No.  It is very tempting to list the attorneys who request that we cap for them, but to do so would embarrass Andy and the others who made such requests.

 

Do people really read FAQ sections?

• I really doubt it, but if you are reading this, I am wrong.  If you are an attorney, give me a call and I’ll send you something for free.  Of course, you’ll have to keep reading to find my number.

 

Will I own the copywrite to the book?

• No.  It is an odd blend.  You own the copywrite to the pleadings but license the rights to us so we can print the book.  Frankly, the copywrite isn’t worth much, but it needs to be this way so we can help print and distribute copies of the book.

 

Can you print the book in hardback?

• No.  No jail or prison we know of will accept copies of the book in hardback or any format other than what is know as “trade paperback.”  We, therefore, only print in that format.  If you really want a few copies in hardback, we will try to make arrangements with a hardback printer and you can pay them directly for whatever copies you want.

 

Can the books be mailed to the jail?

• Yes!  We currently, regularly mail copies of the handbook to jails.  However, the mailing must be done directly through Amazon, Barnes and Noble, or another major online retailer.  Shipping costs may be applied.  If you have a bulk order to a jail, we will help facilitate it to reduce your total cost.

 

How do I get started?  

• To get started or to get more information, send a text message to 661Justice (661-587-8423) or give us a call on the same number.