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William J Brennan

3.0
Rating: 6.5

Licensed for 38 years

Criminal defense Lawyer at Philadelphia, PA
Practice Areas: Criminal Defense

1600 Locust St., Philadelphia, PA

About William

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Licenses

Licensed in New Jersey for 38 years

State: New Jersey

Acquired: 1987

Active

Lawyer disciplined by state licensing authority in 2003

Licensed in Pennsylvania for 38 years

State: Pennsylvania

Acquired: 1987

Active

Location

William J. Brennan

1600 Locust St., Philadelphia, PA, 19103

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William J Brennan's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

3.0 /5.0

6 Client Reviews

Filter Avvo Reviews (6) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.

Showing 1 - 5 of 6 reviews

Posted by Bryan | July 18, 2025 | Hired Attorney | Lawsuits & Disputes

Avoid like the plaque

Awful lawyer. He took my case. Chased the check for $2500. Then he abandoned me. His office is a joke. The assistant doesn’t know what she’s doing. Avoid this office like the plaque unless you want to throw money away and get screwed in your case because your so called “lawyer” doesn’t do a thing

Posted by James | October 07, 2024 | Hired Attorney | Employment & Labor

I protested in front of his office to get my money back!!!

So I hired Bill for an unemployment case.He didn't show up on time so they went forward without him.Demanded my money back.He slow walked me so I made up a sign in front of his office that said"William J Brennan broke a written monetery agreement with me.Ask me about it" after about 30 minutes his Se...cretary came out with a check,lol Drunk with power I made up another sign in front of another attorneys office that said "Mark Mendel was unfair to me,ask me about it" ) this was after he pulled a 9mm on me in his office.Long story short,Mendel claimed that I threatened to firebomb his office and I was locked up.Mendel had enough juice to screw me so the bail commissioner is talking 25k bail and Brennan breaks thru the hearing on his cell phone and says that I protested in front of his office peacefully and that he didn't believe that I threatened anyone,lol.The bail was lowered to $2.5k and I skipped out.The moral of the story is that Brennan redeemed himself!!!

Posted by Kellie | January 09, 2023 | Hired Attorney | Domestic Violence

Brennan sucks

Do not hire for domestic violence cases, he sucks sent a stand in does not return phone calls and does not show up to court he works on the fact that most domestic violence case’s get dropped I kept trying to tell him this one ain’t going anywhere in the end I took a plea deal because I had no faith... in this firm at all now at the age of 47 I have a criminal record thank you for not fighting for my case Bill and skip

Posted by Kendall | June 08, 2015 | Criminal Defense

One of the best criminal defense lawyers in Philadelphia

I'm not sure about the negative review on here but I'll tell you this; lawyers can't and don't make guarentees to exonerate everyone. Everything is relative to the person and the charges and the criminal history of said person. Also, you have to be proactive in your own case. I didn't just sit back a...nd let my lawyer work everything out on his own. I did some leg work too, which is good advice for anyone fighting a serious case. I just figured Id put that out there. Personally, I felt like Mr. Brennan was brutally honest and down to earth from the very beginning and made me feel very secure with my case. Don't expect him to sugarcoat anything, but isn't that what you expect in your lawyer anyway? He was able to get some very serious charges dropped to a couple of misdemeanors and probation. Keep in mind that I was facing very serious multiple felonies plus 3 years in state prison. When I got mixed up in trouble again (last time) he was able to get my charges completely dropped. Trust me when I tell you, he is a wizard in the courtroom and has excellent repoire with the prosecutors and judges. He's not inexpensive but my mom told me something very crucial when I was deciding lawyers; when it comes to your freedom, spare no expense. That simple. Those words are a serious bit of wisdom that I hope you consider when you choose Mr. Brennan. You can make back money but years lost can never be replaced. Besides, I wasn't one to gamble with my freedom with cheap lawyers or public defenders. He was even able to continue the case while I worked to pay him off (I couldn't afford his trial fee right away). He WILL work with you. Just pay your fee and stay on top of your business. Plus, in my opinion, Mr. Brennan was worth every single penny. I almost wanted to cut him a check as a 'thank you' afterwards. Anyway, I highly recommend this lawyer and very happy that he helped me with my cases. It is because of him I'm breathing free air.

Posted by alex | October 25, 2011 | Criminal Defense

top philadelphia criminal lawyer

they delivered everything they promised in our first meeting. they know the system & the players in the philadelphia criminal justice system.

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Experience

Rating:  6.5 (Good)

Professional misconduct

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2003.

Admonition issued in NJ, 2003

updated on 12/11/2014

An admonition means an attorney did something wrong but may still practice law. The Bar gives the lawyer an admonition in hopes that he or she will not repeat the behavior.

Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline
    This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 2003
    Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
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