DWI Lawyer in High Point, NC
Guilford County has two courthouses, and a High Point DWI is heard in High Point. Different building, different clerk, different calendar. The law is the same across the county, but almost everything practical about your case is local.
Arrested in High Point?
Tell us the court date and the reading if you have it. We will tell you what to expect.
Sending this form does not make us your lawyer yet.
Your case is heard at the Guilford County Courthouse in High Point, not in Greensboro. It is at 505 East Green Drive. The jail is the building next door at 507.
Two clocks started at your arrest and neither waits for your court date. A 30 day civil revocation, and a ten day point inside it when a limited driving privilege becomes available.
The assessment is worth doing before court, not after. Voluntary submission for a substance abuse assessment is a statutory mitigating factor at sentencing. Done afterwards it is just a condition.
- Where your case is heard
- The first 48 hours in High Point
- What you are facing
- Driving while the case is pending
- How we defend a High Point DWI
- What to do this week
- What a DWI lawyer costs in High Point
- How to choose a High Point DWI lawyer
- Our DWI defense team
- What clients say
- Where we practice
- Questions people ask us
Where your case is heard
Guilford County is unusual. Most North Carolina counties have one courthouse. Guilford has two, and which one your case goes to depends on where the stop happened.
| The Place | The Detail |
|---|---|
| Guilford County Courthouse, High Point | 505 East Green Drive, High Point, NC 27262. Main number (336) 822-6700. The Clerk of Superior Court’s office is open to the public 8:30am to 5:00pm, Monday to Friday, closed 12:45 to 1:45 and on Judicial Branch holidays. |
| High Point Detention Center | 507 East Green Drive, High Point, NC 27260, (336) 641-7900. Next door to the courthouse. |
| Guilford County Courthouse, Greensboro | 201 South Eugene St, Greensboro, NC 27401, Clerk (336) 412-7300. Where the county’s other cases are heard. |
| Our office | 317 South Greene St, Greensboro, about twenty minutes up the road. We are in both courthouses. |
If your citation says High Point, do not turn up in Greensboro. It happens more often than you would think and it turns a manageable court date into a failure to appear.
The first 48 hours in High Point
- The magistrate sets conditions first. On a DWI the magistrate decides release, and on an impaired driving charge there is a hold until you are no longer impaired or a sober responsible adult takes custody.
- Your license is taken at the arrest. That is the civil revocation under G.S. 20-16.5, and it is separate from anything that happens in court. It normally runs 30 days.
- Day ten is the one to write down. A limited driving privilege becomes available once the revocation has run ten days, with a substance abuse assessment and the statute’s other conditions.
- Anything you say on the jail phone is recorded. Those calls are played in court routinely.
- Write down what you remember now. What you ate, when, what was said, how long you waited before the test. In three months it will be gone and it is often the detail that matters.
What you are facing
Impaired driving is sentenced on six levels under G.S. 20-179, and the level, not the charge, decides the outcome.
| Level | Minimum Term | Maximum Term | Maximum Fine |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aggravated Level One | 12 months | 36 months | $10,000 |
| Level One | 30 days | 24 months | $4,000 |
| Level Two | 7 days | 12 months | $2,000 |
| Level Three | 72 hours | 6 months | $1,000 |
| Level Four | 48 hours | 120 days | $500 |
| Level Five | 24 hours | 60 days | $200 |
At Levels Three, Four and Five the term can be served through community service rather than in custody. Which level you land on is driven by grossly aggravating factors, and each prior conviction for an offense involving impaired driving within seven years counts as a separate one.
On a first conviction the license revocation under G.S. 20-19 is a fixed one year. For a fuller treatment of the offense and the three ways the State can prove it, see our main DWI defense page.
Court date at 505 East Green Drive?
Tell us the date and the reading. We will tell you which level is realistically in play and what can be done before you get there.
Call (336) 379-0539Free consultation, answered 24/7Driving while the case is pending
This is the question that matters most to people in High Point, because the public transport option that exists in some cities does not really exist here.
The civil revocation at arrest normally runs 30 days. Under G.S. 20-16.5(p) a limited driving privilege becomes available once ten days of it have run, provided you held a valid license at the time, have no other unresolved impaired driving charge, and have obtained a substance abuse assessment and registered for anything it recommends.
After a conviction a privilege is a separate application under G.S. 20-179.3, usually made at sentencing. Standard working hours are defined as 6:00am to 8:00pm Monday to Friday, and driving outside them needs documentation. Where interlock restrictions are imposed, those hour limits do not apply while you are driving the designated vehicle.
Our fuller explanation is on the license and driving privileges page.
How we defend a High Point DWI
- The stop. Everything the State has comes after it. Weaving inside a lane, sitting at a green light and an anonymous tip are all contested grounds.
- The roadside. Standardized field sobriety tests have published administration requirements. Done wrong, their value drops.
- The breath test. Instrument maintenance records, the fifteen minute observation period and the rights read before the test are all documented and all checkable.
- Blood cases. Warrant, hospital draw procedure, storage and chain of custody, plus the time between driving and the draw.
- The level. Grossly aggravating factors are dates and records, not impressions. Getting one excluded can move you two levels.
- Mitigation. A voluntary assessment, treatment where appropriate and monitored abstinence are all statutory mitigating factors that have to be assembled in advance.
What to do this week
- Note day ten of the civil revocation. That is when a privilege becomes available, not your court date.
- Book the substance abuse assessment. Early, before court. It is a mitigating factor if you do it voluntarily and only a condition if you wait.
- Check the courthouse on your citation. High Point and Greensboro are different buildings.
- Write down the night while you remember it.
- Do not talk about it on the jail phone or online.
What a DWI lawyer costs in High Point
We quote a flat fee for the stage you are in, and you get the number on the first call rather than after a consultation.
What moves it: whether there is a breath test or a blood draw, whether there are grossly aggravating factors to contest, whether a privilege application is needed now, and whether the case is heading for trial. Ask any firm whether the privilege application and the sentencing work are inside the fee or billed separately.
How to choose a High Point DWI lawyer
North Carolina State Bar rules do not permit a lawyer to claim to be the best. Ask things with exact answers:
- “Which courthouse is my case in?” If they do not know Guilford has two, that tells you something.
- “What level am I likely at, and why?” They should name the factors in your case rather than describe the range.
- “When does my civil revocation allow a privilege?” Ten days in, on a 30 day revocation, with conditions.
- “Should I do the assessment before court?” The answer is usually yes, for a reason they should be able to state.
Our DWI defense team
Chad D. Garrett
DWI, Traffic Law, Criminal Defense
Chad started the firm and defends criminal cases in state and federal court. He wrote ABC's of Traffic Law, ABC's of DWI and DWI Essentials.
- Continuing Legal Education Instructor of the Year, North Carolina Bar Association
- Former President, Greensboro Criminal Defense Lawyers Association
- Board Member, Criminal Justice Section, North Carolina Bar Association
Chad D. GarrettFounder
Jason AycothPartner
Sean OlsonPartner
Brandon GoldsboroughCriminal Defense
Stephanie GoldsboroughCriminal Defense
Rebecca ElliottCriminal Defense
Patrick BidwellCriminal Defense
Samantha HeplerCriminal DefenseWhat clients say
4.9 out of 5 from 587 Google reviews. A few recent ones:
Where we practice
Our office is two minutes from the Guilford County Courthouse.
Guilford County: Greensboro · High Point · Jamestown · Gibsonville · Summerfield · Oak Ridge · Pleasant Garden · Stokesdale · Whitsett · McLeansville · Sedalia
Also serving: Randolph, Forsyth, Alamance, Rockingham and Davidson Counties
Questions people ask us
How do I find the best DWI lawyer in High Point?
No lawyer in North Carolina may claim to be the best, under State Bar rules. Ask which courthouse your case is in, what sentencing level you are likely at and why, when your civil revocation allows a privilege, and whether to do the assessment before court. Those have exact answers.
Where is my High Point DWI case heard?
At the Guilford County Courthouse in High Point, 505 East Green Drive, High Point NC 27262. The main number is (336) 822-6700 and the Clerk of Superior Court's office is open 8:30am to 5:00pm, closed from 12:45 to 1:45. Guilford County has two courthouses, so check your citation.
Where will I be held after a High Point arrest?
The High Point Detention Center at 507 East Green Drive, High Point NC 27260. The number is (336) 641-7900. It is next door to the courthouse.
Do I need a High Point lawyer specifically?
You need a lawyer who appears in that courthouse. Our office is in Greensboro, about twenty minutes away, and we are in both Guilford County courthouses. What matters is familiarity with the court your case is actually in, not the address on the letterhead.
When can I drive again?
The civil revocation at arrest normally runs 30 days, and under G.S. 20-16.5(p) a limited driving privilege becomes available once ten days of it have run, with a substance abuse assessment and the statute's other conditions. After a conviction a privilege is a separate application, usually made at sentencing.
What are the DWI sentencing levels?
Six of them under G.S. 20-179, from Level Five at a 24 hour minimum up to Aggravated Level One at a 12 month minimum. At Levels Three, Four and Five the term can be served through community service. Which level applies is driven by grossly aggravating factors.
How long will I lose my license for a first DWI?
One year, fixed by G.S. 20-19. It is four years where there is a prior impaired driving conviction within the three years immediately preceding, and permanent with two or more priors where the most recent was within five years.
Should I do the substance abuse assessment before court?
Usually yes. Voluntary submission for assessment and participation in the recommended treatment is a statutory mitigating factor at DWI sentencing. Done after sentencing it is simply a condition you have to satisfy, and you get no credit for it.
Can I refuse the breath test?
You can, and there are consequences. A willful refusal carries its own license revocation separate from the criminal case, with its own hearing process and deadlines. It also removes certain protections elsewhere in the law. It is not a neutral choice in either direction.
What if my reading was under 0.08?
The case can still proceed. The statute gives the State three alternative routes and one of them requires no number at all. A low reading is useful evidence but it does not end the matter on its own.
Can a DWI be expunged in North Carolina?
No. Offenses involving impaired driving are excluded from the expunction law, so a conviction cannot be cleared. A dismissal or a not guilty finding is in a different position, which is one more reason the outcome of the case matters beyond the sentence.
What happens at the first court date?
Usually not the trial. The first date is typically administrative, and the useful work happens before and between court dates: obtaining discovery, checking the instrument records, pulling the prior conviction dates and building the mitigation. Turning up unprepared to the first date is a wasted opportunity rather than a disaster, but it is still wasted.
Talk to a High Point DWI lawyer
Tell us your court date and the reading if you have it. Free, and there is no obligation.
Garrett, Walker, Aycoth & Olson, Attorneys at Law
317 South Greene St, Greensboro, NC 27401
(336) 379-0539 · answered live, 24 hours
Free consultation · Se habla español
This page explains North Carolina law in general terms as of October 2026. It is not legal advice about your case, and penalties and statutes change. Figures come from N.C.G.S. 20-138.1, 20-179, 20-19, 20-16.5 and 20-179.3. Courthouse and detention center details are from the North Carolina Judicial Branch and Guilford County, checked in October 2026.