Dallas County Suspended Driver License and Reinstatement Information

Driving with a suspended driver’s license can cause a multitude of problems. A citation for a first offense results in high fines and a $750.00 surcharge from the Texas Department of Public Safety (TxDPS). A second offense can be filed as a Class B Misdemeanor, which carries a punishment up to 6 months in jail and up to a $2,000.00 fine. With so much at risk, why would anyone drive with a suspended driver’s license? The answer is simple. For most of us, we can’t do our jobs or take care of our households without driving. But, the answer to this dilemma is not to drive illegally, but rather to stop the suspension of your driver’s license or reinstate your driving privileges if your driver's license has been suspended. How do you do that?

The simple answer is that you fight back. If possible, you stop the suspension of your driver’s license before it happens by requesting a driver license suspension hearing. If your driver’s license still gets suspended, you petition the court for temporary or conditional driving privileges.

Prevent a Dallas County Driver License Suspensions by Requesting a Hearing

If TxDPS seeks to suspend your driver’s license, it must send you a notice letter, which gives you 20 days from the date of the letter to request a hearing. Under this scenario, you should ALWAYS request a hearing. You do NOT have to just accept a driver’s license suspension. There may be numerous legal and factual defenses that can be asserted to prevent a suspension. You need a Dallas County suspended driver license and reinstatement attorney. With over 25 years of legal experience, the attorneys with the Law Office of Todd E. Tkach, P.C., have developed successful strategies to win driver license suspension hearings. We first analyze the facts and the allegations from TxDPS, and then artfully apply the relevant procedural and substantive laws to the facts of your case. Our experience with the laws and with driver license suspension hearings has led us to develop winning strategies under almost any situation.  If you’ve received a notice letter from TxDPS, don’t wait; call us immediately! Time is of the essence.

Drive Legally, Even If Your Driver’s License Has Been Suspended

Has your driver’s license already been suspended? You may have options. The State of Texas acknowledges that most of us have an essential need to be able to legally drive. That essential need does not disappear simply because your driver’s license gets suspended. In recognition of that essential need, the Texas legislature has provided laws for temporary or conditional driver licenses. They’re called Occupational Driver Licenses and the holder of such a driver license can legally drive, even with a suspended driver’s license. However, there are qualifications and the laws allowing Occupational Driver Licenses can be tricky. The Law Office of Todd E. Tkach can help you obtain an Occupational Driver License to get you back on the road, legally.

A Qualified Lawyer Can Prevent a Driver License Suspension or Obtain Authorization to Drive Legally

All Texas driver licenses are issued by the Texas Department of Public Safety. It authorizes essentially 4 types of driver licenses, including Commercial Driver Licenses, Non-Commercial Driver Licenses, Motorcycle Driver Licenses and Occupational Driver Licenses (also known as an “ODL's”). This government agency also has the power to issue and suspend or revoke Texas driver licenses and to prohibit anyone from driving in Texas, even if they don’t have a Texas driver's license.

A driver license suspension begins with a notice from TxDPS, mailed to the last address that it has on file for you. Failure to request a hearing within 20 days from the date of that notice letter will result in a suspension or revocation of your driver's license. If you receive a notice letter from TxDPS, call us immediately! We will take care of everything from beginning to end. We will timely request a hearing with TxDPS, we will attend your hearing, and we will argue the facts and the law on your behalf. At the conclusion of the suspension hearing, we will notify you of the result of the hearing and instruct you on anything that needs to be done.

Before the hearing, TxDPS will send to us the evidence it has that it will present against you at the hearing. Once we receive the evidence, we review it to determine any legal or factual defenses and will call you to discuss it. Even if there are no legal or factual defenses, in most cases, we still get a favorable result at the hearing. Importantly, with all but a few of our clients, we stopped the suspension of their driver's licenses, even when they did exactly what TxDPS accused them of doing.

Regardless of the cited reasons for TxDPS to try to suspend your driver’s license, the attorneys with Todd E. Tkach, P.C. will carefully analyze your case, apply the relevant procedural and substantive laws to the specific facts of your case and develop a winning strategy. Our goal is preserving your driving privileges in the State of Texas.

What if you lose your driver license suspension hearing, or your driver’s license is already suspended? We can still help. You may qualify for an Occupational Driver License (ODL), which is a valid and legal driver license that simply restricts driving to certain geographical areas and to between 4 to 12 hours per day. An ODL gets you back on the road, legally! However, not everyone qualifies for an ODL, and if you do qualify, there are significant procedural hoops to jump through and ongoing requirements that must be adhered to.

Obtaining an ODL is a separate legal proceeding, which can be tricky. We know the procedural and substantive law and how to navigate the courts to get you back on the road. We can quickly determine if you qualify for an ODL. If you do, we will file a petition with the court for an Order of Occupational Driver License. In the Petition, we will set forth your essential need to drive, the geographic areas and the necessary hours within which you need to drive. All Petitions must include your affidavit regarding the truth of your essential need and an SR-22, certifying current automobile liability insurance. After we file the Petition, the Court will set it for a hearing. We will attend the hearing and will present any and all necessary evidence and arguments to support your need for the Occupational Driver License. In most cases, your presence at the hearing is not necessary. At the conclusion of the hearing, the Judge will either grant or deny the Order for Occupational Driver License.

But, you’re not done yet. Even after the Order for Occupational Driver License is granted, there are additional requirements. Unless and until you file all of the necessary papers with TxDPS and pay a driver license reinstatement fee and an Occupational Driver License fee, your ODL is valid for only 45 days. If you timely file all necessary papers and pay all fees, your Occupational Driver License could be valid for up to 2 years.

Don’t forget – time is of the essence! If you receive a suspension or revocation notice letter from TxDPS, call us immediately to talk with one of our attorneys. If your driver’s license has already been suspended, call us to see if you qualify for an Occupational Driver License.

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