Michael H Pham

I hired Michael Pham on a DWI 2nd and he got my case DISMISSED, even with a blood test of .24. A friend who had a marijuana case dismissed recommended that I use his lawyer Michael Pham. I work late hours and Mr. Pham accomodated me for an evening appointment. In the interview I gave all of the facts... that lead to my arrest. Mr. Pham explained all of the law to me and what the consequences were, he also stated that because this is my 2nd DWI, we really should go to trial because if I was to get a 3rd DWI, it would be a felony from 2-10 years. After learning how unreliable the sobriety tests are in measuring whether someone is intoxicated while driving and the issues of a DWI blood draw, I felt Michael Pham had the experience and knowledge to help me out. When my lab result came back at .24 blood alcohol content (3 times the legal limit), I felt that there was just no way to win the case. Mr. Pham showed me there were issues with the blood testing and said we should go to trial. I felt that Mr. Pham had my best interests and I trusted his advice. On the morning of my trial date, I was very anxious and nvervous. Later when the prosecutor dismissed my case I just couldnt believe it. Michael Pham really helped me out of this predicament and I would absolutely recommend him for any criminal case.

Michael Pham was a horrible attorney, but I only came to this conclusion after being "suckered" into his services. The very first time I met Mr. Pham, he was very polite and understanding. He was confident he could dismiss my possession of Marijuana case, especially after the authorities found it in ...someone else's vehicle. Everything was sounding wonderful, so at that moment I hired Mr. Pham. ($1,000 which was paid in full) Which would later be the worst mistake of my life. He was balancing so many cases at once, he NEVER made it on time. I had at least 5 appearances before the Judge, and every time, I would have to wait hours after the Judge called for my case... Just so Mr. Pham could arrive. I called Mr. Pham because he was hours late, and he told me "Im in another courtroom, and ill be there" and hung up in my face. When he arrived the first thing he asked me was " how much are you paying towards your balance"? I was immediately disturbed by this because he had been payed in full, and didn't even recall. When the case finally started, it was constantly rescheduled, because he was "gathering notes" and trying to dismiss it. Well 6 months fly by, and one morning in court, he says to me.... "It didnt work out, and the best I can do is Jail time or deferred adjudication." My heart was heavy, and I instantly felt cheated. He came back from deliberation, and told me "sign this" (probation papers) I started reading over the paper work, and he said "hurry up, I have another case." I then yelled at him, "I'm not signing my life away without reading it" He got enraged, and snatched the papers after I signed them. He also led me to believe I would have everything wiped from my record which wasn't true. He had horrible communication, and never let me on my options. He more or less decided my future without me having a say so. Never saw him again after that, and thank God. I hope this guy hasn't ruined other young lives, like he ruined mine. I don't understand how he sleeps at night.

Michael Pham represented me in a "domestic violence" case almost 4 years ago. I was 27 years old at the time of the incident and had never been in any trouble with the law, let alone domestic violence. My case was unique in the fact that it involved another man who also has a history of violence, non...e of which, was actually documented. Mr. Pham told me that he could have that case dimissed with probation and my record wouldn't be tarnished. However, the DA wasn't willing to hand over a dismissal so Mr. Pham opted for deferred ajudication. He explained to me that basically, deferred ajudication meant that the charge will fall off my record once I completed probation successfully and, of course, stayed out of trouble for 2 years. A few days ago I over heard a lawyer talking on the phone about this same subject so I decided to get his opinion. He told me that it doesn't come off your record at all. That evening I researched what I was charged with and whether or not, I still had a public record and sure enough, I did. Mr. Pham did not tell me that deferred ajudication, for assult on a family member specifically, doesn't just fall off. This was extremely disheartening for me because despite my degrees and work experience I haven't been able to find a job that is comporable to the time and energy I've invested in my education. Now, I must begin the task of having the record sealed in order to move on and have the life that I've earned. I'm not a blind person, however. I completely understand why domestic violence cases are automatically prosecuted by state, which is in order to keep real offenders from attacking their victims again and again. I however, defended myself. Despite the fact that I explained this incident to Mr. Pham and everything that led up to it, I guess he didn't consider it as self defense or maybe he didn't want to tell me. After all, it was only a $300 defense which almost broke me at that point in time. Point being, Mr. Pham was efficient about getting me into his office, and getting me in and out of court, but was inefficient about the information I really needed. This lack of knowledge about "deferred ajudication" has made every interview that I've had in the passed three years a waste of time. There is no explanation on a public record about "domestic assult." It's simply just exists for any employer to see and when they see it, prejudical accusations are made and there was nothing I could do about it because I didn't know it existed. Bottom line: if he would have told me, I would have been better prepared for disappointment