Overall Rating
This is an aggregated review score of Avvo and Lawyers.com reviews.

5.0 /5.0

28 Client Reviews

Avvo

5.0

(22)

Lawyers.com

5.0

(6 )

 See client reviews from Lawyers.com
Filter Avvo Reviews (22) Refine reviews to match your needs. Use the filters to quickly surface reviews that align with your case or priorities.
Star rating
5 stars 22
4 stars 0
3 stars 0
2 stars 0
1 star 0
Practice Areas
Criminal Defense (10) DUI & DWI (5) Lawsuits & Disputes (5) Domestic Violence (1) Expungement (1)
What Clients Mention
Case Results (16) Advocacy (12) Recommendation (11) Professionalism (10) Responsiveness (9) Communication Style (7) Practice Area Knowledge (7) Trustworthiness (7) General Knowledge (5) Character & Conduct (4) Cost of Services (4) Compassion (3) Punctuality (2)

Showing 6 - 7 of 7 reviews | Trustworthiness

Posted by Jeff | April 14, 2014

THE BEST CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER IN SAN JOSE, CA

PART 1 If I could describe Brendan Barrett in 3 words they would be: Professional, Confident, and Effective. Brendan is hands down, the text book example of an AMAZING lawyer. Brendan lays everything out on the table for you from the beginning, explains his tactics and executes them flawlessly... throughout the case. During a criminal case, this is the kind of lawyer that will help you sleep at night and help you know you are in the best hands for criminal defense. But please don’t take my word for it, let me tell you about my 2 cases I hired Brendan for and you make your decision. 11/2010 I was 20 years old fresh out of college. I just graduated for hospitality management and was taking my first dip in the wonderful world of restaurant management. Growing up I had major depression and anxiety issues and was prescribed a number of drugs throughout the years. But one that really stuck with me was Ativan which is a benzodiazepine just like Xanax. I had been taking a dose of 2 mg 3 times a day for 6 years. I was totally functional on it, without question. On my way up to San Mateo one evening on my second week to work, I wasn’t paying attention and I missed the exit I was supposed to take. At the time I had pretty basic blackberry and no knowledge of how to get around San Mateo. I was driving trying to figure out where I was going while looking at my phone and I end up side swiping 3 cars parked in a small neighborhood on the side of the street. A couple people saw me and I did the responsible thing and called the police to have them take my insurance down. At this point I was on the edge of a panic attack by time the cops showed up. When they finally showed up I was in panic, apologizing, and asking for help. They began to ask me the typical cop questions, have you been drinking? Doing drugs? Ect. I hadn’t so I said “no”. They breathalized me 3 times, blew 0.00 each time, made me do sobriety tests, which they said I failed. They went through my car and found my medication. They asked how many I took, I told them I took my daily dosage. They quickly handcuffed me and gave me a DUI under the influence of my prescribed medication I had been taking for 6 years. After a night in jail and a $300 impound ticket I immediately began looking around for lawyers, I was so scared and stressed to the point I just wanted to sleep all day and try to forget about reality. I lost my job and feared of what else I was going to loose from the DUI. I got in touch with a call center who assigns a lawyers to clients, and Brendan was my man. Brendan laid everything out on the table. What the case looked like, what his tactics were going to be, what chances I had, and what the consequences could be in the end. I felt extremely better after hiring Brendan, like the weight just came off my shoulders. Almost a year later we finally went to trial. During that year Brendan had my DUI case dismissed which was a huge deal to me, because my license was at stake. When we finally showed up the criminal trial, the D.A wanted to meet us with a plea of wet and wreck less, which was a lot better than a D.U.I but in California they will take away you license for a being under 21 with a wet and wreck less. Brendan gave me my options and we decided to go to trial. The trial lasted a whole week, and had a full jury, witnesses, toxicologist, the works. Brendan, picked out a good jury, hired a AMAZING toxicologist who basically wrote the book on Alcohol and Drug Detection in California, called great witnesses, poked amazing holes in the D.A and the Cops who arrested me. And even had me go on the stand and testify myself, which was a bold move on both our parts, but Brendan gave me the confidence to battle the D.A and protected me while I was on the stand. CONTINUE TO PART 2

Posted by Jeff | April 14, 2014

THE BEST CRIMINAL DEFENSE LAWYER IN SAN JOSE, CA

PART 2 In the end, after a whole week, we won the case. The case had a hung jury, 11 believed me innocent 1 believed me guilty. BRENDAN CONQUIRED THE COURT ROOM ON A COMPLICATED CASE!! ALSO THE D.A HE WAS UP AGAINST NEVER LOST A CASE BEFORE MINE!! The reason that this case was complicated was... because pharmaceutical medications are not in court rooms as much as drugs and alcohol. Meaning that if your going to win a case like mine, it means alot of reading up and studying to find an angle to win the case. While giving a jury a crash course on the substance so they understand the lawyers and what the toxicologist is talking about. JUST GOES TO SHOW THAT BRENDAN IS EXTREMLY ITELLIGENT AS WELL. In the end, I kept my license, no crime on my record, and owed no money to the court. Just to Brendan who deserved every penny. 1/14 Earlier this January, I was driving back home in San Jose, CA on 680 around 10:00 PM. I was speeding and had a few drinks before I left. I was pulled over by CHP, did a sobriety test and breathalyzer and blew a 0.09, but when I went down to the police station, I blew a 0.07 and a 0.06 in the calibrated machine. But I still was giving a DUI just for alcohol this time. Same ordeal, night in jail, $300 impound fee. Guess who I called? Brendan was happy to hear from me, not happy about what happened, but like always was willing to help. I went to his office in downtown SJ. Same thing, he laid out the case on the table, told me his tactics, told me my chances, and told me my consequences. I walked out of his office, and felt like I had nothing to fear. A month later, Brendan gets the DUI case thrown out, saves my license. A month after, Brendan tells me that D.A was accepting his plea of wet and wreckless, which is way better than a DUI. It is a lower fine and hardly any classes or community service. But it gets better, Brendan is a well liked guy in his circles AND WAS ABLE TO GET IT DOWN FROM A DUI TO A PLAIN OLD WRECKLESS DRIVING. NO CLASSES, NO COMMUNITY SERVCE, JUST PAY THE COURT $1000. The best part was, I didn’t even take one step in a court room. I just lived my life and put it in Brendan hands and got the next best thing to having the whole thing dismissed. In the end, in my opinion, Brendan is the best choice for criminal defense. He is intelligent, professional, effective, and most of all re-assuring and friendly which is what you really need in a time of need. I don’t condone any of the things I did, but everyone makes mistakes and sometimes we need help dealing with those mistakes. FOR THOSE MISTAKES, BRENDAN BARRET IS YOU BEST CHOICE!!!! Thanks for everything Brendan. Keep up the good work. Your Friend and Client.

See All Client Reviews