Courts reopened today to different practices and procedures depending on the jurisdiction. I suggested and the MCDAA formed a Covid-19 Committee to get some uniformity for trial practice. Only a few judges have been interested in the Organization's input, although...
I was just retained by a new client. She had partially paid another lawyer who told her she had a 40% chance of getting the case dismissed. This soothsayer has not seen the police report nor the Body Camera footage. He could not tell you who the prosecutor is going...
The practice of criminal law does not stop when the courts are closed. I had a Bail Hearing this week- she was released and then the charges dismissed. The State is still sending discovery and Body Camera footage. How the courts handle trials when we reopen is in...
I once once again named as a Maryland Super Lawyer. Doesn't mean you work lessYou never work less on a case, pandemic or not.
One advantage of being in practice alone is that I am the only person who shows up in court. People are unhappy when they retain a specific lawyer and then on the day of trial/plea somebody else shows up. They are really unhappy when their family member goes to jail...
This was one of the most challenging cases I've ever defended. The accuser was a 5 year old child and my client was her 18 year old uncle. The biggest challenge was jury selection. 75 potential jurors were brought into the courtroom. When asked whether "you...
Clients sometimes want to create a new reality. They do this by not telling the lawyer the truth or all the facts. They hope it gets hidden that way. I tell everyone I need to know exactly what happened.. I am a really good lawyer according to my peers and clients,...
That is a phrase my former partner used years ago when he set a fee and the potential client said he or she knew a cheaper lawyer. I started writing this a couple months ago but thought I would finish it today. The particular case that generates this was an Ex...
The criteria for bail has been changed because Attorney General Frosh found that the system of cash bail is unfair to minorities and the poor. Our Attorney General has been a champion for those in the State who are without power and who areb unfairly targeted, wither...
Sometimes the deal is SOOO good that a defendant who is innocent accepts it, but the deal has to good if the downside of being convicted at a trial is much worse. It is called an Alford plea and is based on a Supreme Court decision in Alford v. North Carolina. The...
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Gary S. Bernstein, P.A.
215 Washington Ave
Ste 700
Towson, MD 21204
Phone: 410-337-7770
Fax: 410-823-0610
