Attorney Profile
Cody Cofer is a partner at the Cofer Luster Law Firm. He is Board Certified in Criminal Law by the Texas Board of Legal Specialization (certified in 2013, recertified in 2018). Before becoming a criminal defense lawyer in Texas, he prosecuted misdemeanor and felony charges (adult and juvenile).
Cody Cofer
Criminal Defense Lawyer
PROFILE
About Cody Cofer
As a Fort Worth defense attorney, Cody has worked privately defending hundreds of clients and was also appointed as an Assistant Federal Public Defender. His trial experience includes practically every kind of criminal charge: sex trafficking, drug conspiracy, murder, theft, DWI, and white-collar crimes. He has argued appeals in state and federal court, including the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals; Fort Worth Second Court of Appeals; and the Fifth Circuit Federal Court of Appeals. Cody regularly teaches evidence and trial advocacy to other attorneys. Meet with Cody to talk about your Tarrant County or Federal criminal case, and to ask about his 10 years as a criminal trial attorney.
CERTIFICATIONS
Board Certified by Texas Board of Legal Specialization
After five years of practice, Cody Cofer became Board Certified in Criminal Law. Aside from the continued trust of his clients, this is Cody’s greatest achievement. To become Board Certified, a lawyer must have extensive trial and appellate experience. Once a lawyer accumulates the required experience then the lawyer must receive recommendations from judges and other lawyers. Upon submission of these qualifications to the Texas Board of Legal Specialization (TBLS) the application is reviewed. If the lawyer meets the objective experience qualifications then the Board allows the attorney to sit for the specialization exam. The Specialization Exam is often said to be harder than the Bar Exam. So, you can see, Board Certification Matters. This sets Cody Cofer apart from most other Fort Worth criminal attorneys.
ACADEMIC EDUCATION
Texas Tech University School of Law | Doctor of Jurisprudence
Cody Cofer obtained his Doctor of Jurisprudence from Texas Tech University School of Law. During his time as a law student represented the Law School in national mock trial competitions. He also served as an editor on the Administrative Law Journal. As a third-year law student, he served as the Board of Barristers Vice-Chair of Mock Trial. In this position, he helped manage the mock trial program and school competitions. He received several awards for his mock trial performance, including the J. Edgar Hadley Award, American Jurisprudence Award in Trial Advocacy, and the prestigious Order of the Barrister.
Texas Tech University | Masters in Business Administration
While at Texas Tech for law school, Cody also obtained a Masters Degree in Business Administration. This was a great opportunity to develop further communication skills and project management experience. Unlike law school, business school requires students to work in teams. Effective management of teams is an invaluable skill set for defending complex criminal cases. Also, the education-related to statistics and data management provided a base for handling criminal cases based on reliable data, rather than mere intuition. As an example, jury selection has traditionally been guided by “feel” rather than classifying important information about prospective jurors.
Baylor University | Bachelor of Arts
For his undergraduate degree, Cody attended Baylor University where he earned a Bachelor of Arts in Speech Communication. This is the study of messages and their meanings. He received extensive education in persuasive communication, nonverbal communication, and small group decision-making. Selecting this area to study was prompted by Cody’s love for the excitement of public speaking. However, it has proved to be perfectly suited for becoming a trial lawyer. Aside from studying, Cody worked in law offices and the service industry. Cody was selected as a “Bullock Scholar.” Greater detail about this honor and experience is listed above.
LEGAL EXPERIENCE
Partner | Cofer Luster Law Firm, P.C. | 2018-Present
Cody partnered with his trusted friend and colleague James Luster to found the Cofer Luster Law Firm. The two trial lawyers met at the beginning of their careers at a training event commonly called “Baby Prosecutor School.” At the time, Cody was a prosecutor in Henderson County and James a prosecutor in Lubbock. As they matured as lawyers, first as prosecutors and then as defense attorneys, they remained close and realized they had shared values and complementing styles. Now they have teamed up to provide elite level service in criminal defense.
Assistant Federal Public Defender | Northern District of Texas | 2016-2018
As an Assistant Federal Public Defender, Cody Cofer had the opportunity to represent clients in more federal cases than most non-AFPD lawyers would in an entire career. During his time at the FPD, he developed a reputation as the go-to trial attorney for the Northern District of Texas. He tried multiple cases in Fort Worth and Dallas. He received the highest quality training and education from the nation’s best federal defense lawyers. He also served as the co-coordinator for the FPD Criminal Justice Act Panel continuing legal education seminar directed by the FPD’s Office. Now, he has taken his experience, skill and talent back into private practice.
Managing Partner | Cofer Law, P.C. | 2011-2016
In 2011, Cody moved to Fort Worth to open his own law practice. He began practicing both criminal defense and family law. Although he already had advanced trial experience from prosecuting, Cody knew he needed to get into the courtroom to try cases as a criminal defense attorney. So, he volunteered his time to sit as second chair with many established Fort Worth criminal attorneys. Soon, Cody had a long list of felony trials including murders, sexual assaults, and a variety of other charges. Besides his volunteer trial experience, Cody was building an impressive resume of his own complex criminal defense trials and appeals. All of the hard work has paid off. Now, Cody Cofer is Board Certified in Criminal Law, and he manages one of the most well-respected boutique criminal defense law firms in the State.
Prosecutor | Henderson County, Texas | 2009-2011
Before becoming a Fort Worth criminal attorney, Cody Cofer worked as a prosecutor. To develop trial experience early in his career Cody joined the Henderson County Attorney’s Office to prosecute criminal cases. He tried a long list of cases included DWIs, Assault Family Violence, Felony Drug Possession, and other cases. Aside from the experience in the courtroom in front of juries, Cody was able to prosecute several appeals. This led to arguing before intermediate appellate courts and the Texas Court of Criminal Appeals. The greatest benefit received from working in the County Attorney’s Office was the mentoring of several great lawyers and friends, including Sam Hicks (First Assistant County Attorney) and Brian Schmidt (Defense Attorney).
Bullock Scholar | Texas Legislative Internship
As a student at Baylor University, Cody was one of nine students to spend a semester working in the Texas Legislature through the Bullock Scholars Program. The Program was named to honor the memory and numerous contributions to society by Mr. Bob Bullock. Cody served in Senator Ken Armbrister’s Austin Office during the 78th Regular Legislative Session. Cody researched legislation, represented the Senator’s position in staff committee meetings, and was involved in essentially every aspect of the “In Session” legislative process. This experience gave Cody a new understanding and appreciation for how our laws are made. The experience shaped Cody’s direction going forward. Policy is fun and rewarding, but Cody realized behind the scenes was not his place. So, he started his path to the courtroom.
PROFESSIONAL AFFILIATIONS
TCDLA
Cody Cofer has been a member of Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association (TCDLA) since 2008. TCDLA is the largest organization of criminal defense attorneys in the United States. The association started about 40 years ago. Through the years Cody Cofer has participated in hundreds of hours of criminal defense training and teaching through TCDLA.
NACDL Member
Cody Cofer is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers (NACDL). This organization provides support for criminal defense attorneys at all levels of federal and state. NACDL promotes rational and humane criminal justice policy. We strive for a criminal justice system with: fairness; due process; and just punishment for the guilty.
NORML
As an attorney on the NORML Legal Committee (NLC), Cody Cofer committed to the overall goals of NORML. As one of the top-notch criminal defense lawyers of NLC, Cody regularly defends individuals charged with marijuana offenses. This includes indigent defense and privately retained clients. NLC lawyers work to protect people from unreasonable searches and seizures.
Tarrant County Bar Association | Board of Directors
Cody is currently serving his second term on the Board of Directors for the Tarrant County Bar Association.
TCYLA
As a board member for Tarrant County Young Lawyers Association (TCYLA), Cody Cofer lead many mentorship and networking efforts. This organization provides support for law students and young lawyers to gain valuable education and experience. Aside from helping young lawyers, TCYLA does a variety of philanthropic works in the form of volunteer work and fundraising.
Cofer Luster Law Firm
Cofer Luster Law Firm PC is a team of criminal defense attorneys dedicated to providing the highest quality representation in state and federal criminal charges, including assault family violence, DWI, indecency with a child, and white collar fraud.
Criminal Defense Lawyer
Criminal Defense Lawyer
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Criminal Defense Lawyer - Of Counsel
Criminal Defense Lawyer - Of Counsel
Clients notice the difference between Cofer Luster Law Firm and other criminal defense lawyers because of our nonjudgmental, informed, down-to-earth, and results-oriented approach. Dedicated to delivering consistently excellent results for each of our clients. We don’t rest on our prior triumphs; we come to work every day with the motivation and enthusiasm to fight for our clients. Contact us immediately and let us fight for you.
WE CAN’T PROTECT YOU UNTIL YOU CALL US.
