Russell David Bernstein

I got a "no driver license" ticket in July 2025 hired this guy to help me he took $1,300 as down payment on $1,800 retainer. He did an arraignment for me by Zoom a month later . That was a Friday. The charge was upgraded to DWLS with knowledge with 250 days in jail plea offer. He called and told me ...that then hung up. Went to a vacation trip with his family that weekend. After he hung up, same day , Friday afternoon, I called and text him like crazy to no answer . I had to resort to Chat GPT to help me. Saturday I spoke to him he lied to me about a few things. Same day, Saturday he files a withdraw of council motion with the court. Citing " irreconcilable differences " whatever that means. A week later it was granted. This so called lawyer took my money and kept it. DID NOTHING FOR THE MONEY. ,and I'm a pensioner living on a small SS check , He kept it , $1,300 and quit. I would not recommend him to handle a parking ticket for anyone...,much less anything more serious.

For a few years I used Russell to handle traffic tickets at the recommendation of a friend, and for a while he was effective. Suddenly, came a ticket in which the book got thrown at me. I found that deeply out of character given my record and his. At the next ticket, it just so happened that the o...fficer made a critical error in writing the ticket. Should've been an easy dismissal. On the day of court some amateur attorney shows up, late no less, instead of Mr Bernstein, whom I paid to represent me. This attorney had no confidence and instead of telling me to stay silent while talking in the hallway with the officer before the hearing, he encourages me to answer the officer's questions. I looked him in the eye and asked if he realized he was helping the officer make his case by asking me to answer the officer's questions. When I looked the officer in the eye and said "I assert my right to silence" the officer walked away upset. This Bernstein sent to represent me would have secured the conviction for the officer if I was any less attuned to the situation. This made me wonder if the prior ticket, where the book had been thrown at me was handled by some other amateur attorney-- something i could never prove. A few years later, I was falsely arrested for reckless driving and had video evidence collected by my dash cam to exonerate myself. I figured I'd give Russ another try. Mr. Bernstein took over $1000 of my money to go to one hearing. After that he strongly encouraged me to take the first plea bargain offered by the prosecutor. I asked him if he had discussed my video with the prosecutor at all, to which he responded it wasn't worth it and I should just take the plea bargain. I fired him that afternoon over the phone. What he didn't know was that I had hired one of the forensic traffic experts that the state attorney's office used to review my video, paid his fee, and had, in writing, a forensic analysis that contradicted what the officer wrote in his arrest affidavit. You would think that Mr Bernstein would have done this, not me, the client PAYING HIM to do find a way to clear my name. I then hired a much higher quality attorney who had actually worked as a prosecutor at the Broward State Attorney's office, and he got my case tossed out with one meeting, during which the prosecutor covered their face and shook their head as they watched the video. Apparently the officer that arrested me had a reputation for less than stellar behavior that preceded my arrest . Bottom line, Russell Bernstein didn't put up an effort. He didn't bother arguing for a better plea bargain. He didn't even consult a traffic expert about my video to see if there was anything credible there. He took my money, took whatever the prosecutor was offering and gave me poor advice. I was smart enough to see that he wasn't representing my best interests. Not many folks will be. I STRONGLY encourage you to avoid this attorney, and to get a second opinion if it sounds like he's cutting corners in representing you. Had I stuck with him, I would have a criminal traffic conviction on my record today for something I never did. Instead, the case was tossed because another attorney got the job done right.

Russell D. Bernstein in South FL is the WORST Traffic Ticket Attorney out there. He charged me a whopping $99 and then sent me a letter in the mail stating that I owed ANOTHER $206 to the courthouse. Meanwhile, my ticket was for only $266. Now, I'm stuck paying $305. I would've been better off paying... the ticket myself, since he did absolutely nothing and made money off of me. Russell Bernstein didn't even have the common courtesy to contact me directly to notify me of this outcome. I will never use him again. I should've heeded to the warnings of the other poor reviews that were written about him online. He is a money-taker! My ticket should have been easily wiped off. I rarely ever get a ticket. My last one was when I was in high school and I'm now 36. STAY AWAY or you too will be sorry, just like me.

MY MOTHER HIRED MR. BERNSTEIN AS HIS FEE WAS THE LOWEST. CLAIMED THAT HE WOULD HANDLE EVERYTHING, MY MOM DID NOT HAVE TO SHOW UP, IN COURT NOT TO WORRY, HE WOULD TAKE CARE OF THE PROBLEM. TIME WENT BY MY MOM RECIEVED NOTICE FROM THE CLERK OF THE COURT ASKING FOR CORT FEES AND COSTS, MR BERNSTEIN D...ID NOT LIVE UP TO HIS WORD AND AS I,M SENDING THIS NOTE MY MOTHER DL IS SUSPENDED. MR. BERNSTEIN DID NOT HEEP HIS WORD.

I got a DUI and he promised so many things and didnt follow tru. He was always late he didnt ask the judge for anything i wanted i bascilly had to handle stuff on my own with the judes secrety. I would not hire him again, Also if you get a DUI in the state of FL everyone gets the same no matter what ...unless you take it to trial and i wouldnt count on him as doing anything.. MY suggestion is save your money dont hire any lawyer unless u are going to take it all the way...