Education

Bernard F. Walsh graduated from the University of South Florida before receiving his law degree from Cumberland School of Law in 1978. During law school, he was selected to serve as a research clerk and intern for a Federal Judge and the U.S. Attorney's Office. He was awarded The National Book Awards for Constitutional Law and Professional Responsibility during law school.

Experience

Bernard Walsh devoted the next three years to trial work for the State of Florida. This provided him with the opportunity to concentrate on his trial abilities, with numerous high profile trials concerning serious felony crimes. Since 1982, he has exclusively practiced personal injury law and helped accident victims in and beyond Sarasota and Manatee Counties in Florida.

Mr. Walsh is an AV Preeminent® rated attorney in Martindale-Hubbell®. AV means the highest possible rating in both Legal Ability and Ethical Standards. Mr. Walsh is also listed in AVVO as Superb, which is the highest rating for attorneys in AVVO. Mr. Walsh was appointed to the National Trial Lawyers Association as an Executive Committee Top 100 Trial Lawyers (2013 onward). Florida has only 12 lawyers appointed to the National Trial Lawyers Executive Committee. The executive committee is selected nationwide for excellence, professionalism and being and demonstrating they are an active and a driving force in the legal community. He is also listed in the National Association of Personal Injury Lawyers, and has been inducted into Southern Trial Lawyers Association, as well as the Melvin M. Belli Society. He has also won the largest playground recovery (2008), one of the top three motorcycle recoveries (2006), and the second largest daycare center recovery (2010), in the State of Florida. He is a member of the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum. The Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum is a group of attorneys who have achieved career case successes that include multi-million dollar recoveries,
settlements and /or verdicts.

Activities, Associations and Awards

 Bernard Walsh is firmly committed to community service. He is an active member of the Manatee and Sarasota Sheriff's Advisory Board, the Florida Highway Patrol Advisory Council and the One Hundred Club for Law Enforcement. His volunteer efforts to help all levels of law enforcement have benefited both private citizens and law enforcement personnel.

The National Trial Lawyers Association has appointed Mr. Walsh as an Executive Committee - Top 100 Trial Lawyer.
Florida has only 12 lawyers appointed to the NTL Executive Committee and this honor was bestowed on him by a vote of the Executive Committee.

The Motorcycle Injury Trial Lawyers association.
As an experienced Florida motorcycle injury lawyer, Bernard Walsh won a $6 Million settlement - one of Florida's three largest motorcycle accident case settlements. A time-tested and highly respected member of the legal and law enforcement community, Mr. Walsh's membership brings additional knowledge and prestige to the Motorcycle Injury Trial Lawyers association (MITLA) and benefits the mission of The Motorcycle Injury Trial Lawyers Association to promote excellence in the legal profession through training, networking and education of trial lawyers. Additionally The Motorcycle Injury Trial Lawyers Association promotes and endorses some of the country's premier educational CLE seminars. These conferences offer the most current information regarding important topics facing today's trial lawyer.

Bernard F. Walsh is a board member of the Florida Justice Association, a statewide organization of trial lawyers; the founder and president of the Manasota Trial Lawyers Board, a ‘by invitation’ group of trial lawyers; and The National Advisory Board of APITLA.

APITLA is the Association of Plaintiff Interstate Trucking Lawyers of America and is a national association of committed lawyers who have joined together to help eliminate unsafe and illegal interstate trucking practices. Through the combined efforts in learning, litigation and legislation, they are working today to make America’s highways a safer place.

Mr. Walsh lectures on the law and has been asked to make presentations for the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, Stetson School of Law, American Inns of Court and the State College of Florida. He has also presented at Southern Trial Lawyers Association, Florida Justice Association, the Melvin M. Belli Society, the North Carolina Lawyers for Justice, and the Ft. Myers Trial Lawyers Association. These lectures include presentations on how to present evidence to both a jury and insurance companies. Other lectures he presented include Trial Advocacy and Medical Jurisprudence. Additionally, Mr. Walsh has been a moderator for a national webcast on trucking litigation.

Mr. Walsh is a member of The Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, the Florida Justice Association, American Trial Lawyers Association, American Association of Justice, Southern Trial Lawyers Association, and the American Society of Legal Advocates. The American Society of Legal Advocates, ASLA, is an invitation-only, nationwide organization of elite lawyers in practice today. ASLA draws its membership from lawyers who combine stellar legal credentials with a proven commitment to community engagement and the highest professional standards. Mr. Walsh is a member of the Sarasota County Bar Association, Manatee County Bar Association, Tampa Bay Trial Lawyers Association, the Florida Bar – Trial Lawyers Section, the American Bar Association, the Manasota Trial Lawyers Board, and the Multi-Million Dollar Advocates Forum.

He is also a member of the Melvin M. Belli Society. The Melvin M. Belli Society is a group of lawyers who have distinguished themselves as trial lawyers and who are dedicated to the principles of education on an international basis. Membership in the Melvin M. Belli Society is by invitation only and approval of the board. Only those lawyers who meet the criteria established by the board are invited to join. Its stated purpose is to promote the international exchange of ideas among lawyers through meetings and education.

Mr. Walsh was recently honored by membership in the Motor Vehicle Trial Lawyers Association, the Insurance Bad Faith Trial Lawyers Association, the Mass Tort Trial Lawyers Association and the National Brain Injury Trial Lawyers Association.