James E Bernstein

Jim Bernstein represented me in 2013 on a simple possession case (possession of a drug residue). He did a fantastically terrible job as my attorney. The assistant DA, Stacy Borgman, who is admittedly a piece of work in her own right, asked for 10 days jail time right off the bat, which was outrageous... considering the following: I had zero criminal record, this was a true residue case, and there were several substantial mitigating factors. To give you some perspective, my co-defendant had 3 prior felonies and 2 prior person to person misdemeanors and was on post-prison parole for delivery of cocaine and delivery of heroin but her attorney got the same DA to agree to only two 12 hour jail blocks (10 times less jail time than me). Jim let my case drag out in court for 8 months and to this day I still do not understand why he did this. He gave me the impression that he was working to try to get the DA to drop the 10 days but in the end he simply told me that I had to plead guilty or I would be risking 10 years in prison. This was a lie as the maximum sentence allowable by state law for this crime is 30 days, but at the time I did not understand felony sentencing in Oregon and regretfully, I trusted him... Big mistake. He also told me that he tried to get me onto the drug court but that they would not allow me to do drug court... This was a BOLD FACED LIE. The drug court issue was a huge point of contention between us. I tried very hard to get Jim to ask the DA/drug court team if I could do the drug court and again he stalled until the last minute and then told me they said no. I later found out that he never even asked. If I had known what I know now, I would have fired Jim before the first case manager appearance: I had plenty of cause to do so. I have since learned that Jim is indeed a very good attorney, when he wants to be. Jim is sometimes even passionate about defending clients in Clackamas County. Consider keeping Jim as your attorney if your case is for DUI or for a violent crime including serious domestic violence, especially if you are a veteran. SERIOUSLY if you are a veteran keep this guy. He loves veterans and will do a good job for you. Jim needs to relate to you in order to give a damn about your case. If it involves drugs or you suffer from a drug addiction then I would highly recommend that you fire Jim Bernstein ASAP. Also, a person would have to be crazy to retain this guy. Go on AVVO and find a GOOD attorney: there are many. I have had experience with three public defenders in Clackamas... Two of them, were good. Jim Bernstein is terrible. He let my case drag out in court for months for absolutely no reason... He told me my charge was expungable when it wasn't and refused to ask the da if I could do the family drug court even though he said he did... He actually lied many times to me during my case. I feel so bad for the guy who posted below and actually paid this guy to represent him in his DR case. I most highly DO NOT RECOMEND JIM BERNSTEIN.