At the Bird Law Firm, LLC, Bernice Bird, M.S., Esq., LL.M. proudly serves the Central Florida community as a family law attorney and civil rights advocate.
Before Attorney Bird received her license to practice law in Florida in 2013, she practiced mental health counseling. She earned her Master’s in Counseling Psychology summa cum laude from Florida International University in Miami, Florida. For five years, Attorney Bird counseled children with Autism, at-risk adolescents, adults with Post Traumatic Stress Disorder, Schizophrenia, Substance Abuse disorders, Depression, Bipolar Disorders, Anxiety Disorders, and survivors of domestic violence. In 2009, Attorney Bird made the transition to law and chose to dedicate her passion for helping people by defending their legal rights.
In 2012, Attorney Bird graduated cum laude from Barry University School of Law in Orlando, Florida, and was licensed to practice law in Florida in 2013. During law school, Attorney Bird assisted as a guardian ad litem intern with the Legal Aid Society of the Orange County Bar Association and served as a law clerk with a private law firm assisting on matters including family law, personal injury, and foreclosure defense. After graduation, she relocated to Washington, D.C., and shifted her focus to pursue a career in civil rights policy.
In Washington, D.C., Attorney Bird pursued a Master’s in Law (LL.M.) and graduated summa cum laude from American University Washington College of Law with an LL.M. degree in Law and Government, with a dual specialization in Law, Politics, & Legislation and Gender and the Law. There, Attorney Bird clerked with the House Judiciary Committee at the House of the Representatives as a Congressional intern, assisting in drafting the Amicus Brief defending the contraception coverage mandate of the Affordable Care Act and organizing various voting rights projects prior to the Presidential election of 2012. Then, Attorney Bird clerked at the Mental Health Division of the Public Defenders Service of the District of Columbia assisting attorneys in the defense of people who were committed in mental health institutions. Throughout her legal career, Attorney Bird has published on various civil rights issues such as employment discrimination, reproductive rights, and voting rights.
Since relocating to Florida in 2013, Attorney Bird has served as a family attorney. Additionally, Attorney Bird provides legal services to Mexican nationals at the Consulate of Mexico in Orlando, Florida and serves as the Legal Panel Chair on the board of the American Civil Liberties Union of Central Florida.
As of May 4, 2017, the United Nations granted the Bird Law Firm with special accreditation status so as to participate in the creation of the United Nations Global Compact for safe, orderly, and regular migration. Attorney Bird serves on the Steering Committee for the selection of panelist speakers and subject matters for presentation to heads of state, delegates, private sector entities, and non-governmental organizations in drafting the Global Compact.
In her spare time, Attorney Bird enjoys running and painting abstract art. She has presented her artwork in exhibits in Sacramento, California, the Orlando Museum of Art, and Baterbys Art Gallery in Winter Park, Florida.