Jo Anne Bernal has been a practicing attorney for 22 years and represents elected and appointed officials in litigation in state and federal court.  In addition to handling complex litigation, she supervises 38 attorneys who practice both civil and criminal law in areas of practice that range in diversity from civil rights litigation to juvenile prosecution. Ms. Bernal worked for former County Attorney Jose R. Rodriguez from October 1993 until November 2009. 

Ms. Bernal is Board Certified in Civil Trial Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization and has been certified since 1993.  She is currently the only female attorney board certified in Civil Trial Law in El Paso Texas. 

Ms. Bernal was an Assistant Attorney General in the Law Enforcement Division of the Texas Attorney General’s Office from 1987 to 1993 where she represented state law enforcement agencies and officers in federal and state litigation.

She received her undergraduate and law degrees from the University of Texas at Austin. She is licensed to practice law before the United States District Court for the Western District of Texas and the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  

Ms. Bernal has served as a Board Member for the Advocacy Center for the Children of El Paso, the El Paso Police Department Citizen’s Advisory Committee, the State Bar of Texas’ Committee on Legal Services to the Poor in Civil Matters, and the Rio Grande Council of Governments Criminal Justice Advisory Committee. 

She regularly volunteers at the Opportunity Center for the Homeless of El Paso, has served as a mock trial coach for area high schools, is a member of the PTA and is a founding member of the Women’s Political Action Committee.