What does pleading no contest mean?

The legal impact of a no contest plea is essentially the same as a guilty plea, in that it is treated the same way for sentencing purposes. However, the advantage of a no contest plea is it allows the client to avoid having to specifically state what they did. This can be very important if the client fears a civil lawsuit or some other collateral consequence of a guilty plea which would require the client to specifically state in their own words what the client did. Such a resolution usually only results from a negotiated resolution between the client's lawyer and the prosecutor. Also, both the prosecutor and the judge must agree to the no contest plea. Otherwise, it is not a viable option.

There are three (3) legal pleas in criminal law:

1) Guilty - an admission and acknowledgment of guilt.

2) Not Guilty - a denial of guilt which as a plea, may be changed at a subsequent proceeding or factual determination.

3) No Contest - a plea which does not admit or acknowledge guilt, but is treated as if the defendant entered a plea of guilty.

One side note: Many jurisdictions do not allow a plea of No Contest, or, even where they do (such as in Florida's criminal law system), another jurisdiction may decide that the plea is a plea admitting or acknowledging guilt.

There are three (3) legal pleas in criminal law:

1) Guilty - an admission and acknowledgment of guilt.

2) Not Guilty - a denial of guilt which as a plea, may be changed at a subsequent proceeding or factual determination.

3) No Contest - a plea which does not admit or acknowledge guilt, but is treated as if the defendant entered a plea of guilty.

One side note: Many jurisdictions do not allow a plea of No Contest, or, even where they do (such as in Florida's criminal law system), another jurisdiction may decide that the plea is a plea admitting or acknowledging guilt.