New Jersey Criminal Defense Lawyer - Qualifications of New Jersey Lawyer Edward J. Byrne

Edward Byrne was admitted to the New Jersey Bar in 1976. He holds a B. S. in Industrial Engineering from New Jersey Institute of Technology and a Juris Doctorate, Cum Laude, from Seton Hall Law School. Before his law studies he worked as an engineer for the electronics division of United Technologies and later served as a Peace Corps volunteer, teaching school for two years in Liberia, West Africa.

After law school Ed clerked for the Honorable David D. Furman, J. S. C. in the Middlesex County Chancery Division, and then practiced public sector labor law with Murray, Meagher and Granello.

Later, during twenty-seven years with the New Jersey Public Defender's office, Ed headed the Public Defender's offices in Morris and Ocean counties and served as the First Assistant in the Union and Middlesex county offices. As a Public Defender he represented thousands of clients in criminal cases of every type, including: arson, assault, burglary, conspiracy, contempt, domestic violence, drug distribution, eluding, forgery, fraud, gambling, homicide, kidnapping, robbery, sexual assault, terroristic threats, theft, vehicular homicide, weapons possession, and witness tampering. His many jury trials included five capital murder trials.

Ed later served as an associate with the Law Offices of Alan Zegas representing clients in civil and criminal cases, as well as school employees and professionals in disciplinary proceedings. He represented clients in a broad variety of criminal cases including: child pornography, domestic violence, official misconduct and money laundering. He also represented clients in appeals to the Appellate Division and to the New Jersey Supreme Court, and in Post Conviction Relief Petitions. He represented clients in municipal court charged with a broad variety of motor vehicle offenses, including: DUI, refusal, driving while suspended, and driving without insurance. He also represented clients in complex public corruption cases in federal court in New Jersey and in New York.

Ed served as president of the Middlesex County Bar Association in 1995, and in 1998 he received the Lawyer Achievement Award from the Middlesex County Bar Association. He also received the NJ Criminal defense lawyers fighting for the rights of their clients first. Professional Lawyer of The Year Award for Middlesex County from the New Jersey Commission on Professionalism in the Law in 1997. Ed is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey. The New Jersey Supreme Court's Board on Attorney Certification has also recognized Ed as a Certified Criminal Trial Attorney.