Jay Blass Cohen has defended people in Houston courtrooms since he founded Blass Law in 2009. He went into defense work right out of law school and has never been a prosecutor, so he’s never been paid to put anyone in jail. Keeping Innocent People Innocent® is how he describes the job.
DWI cases turn on science: a breath or blood number and the roadside tests. Jay learned that science himself. He’s an ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist, a designation from the Chemistry and the Law Division of the American Chemical Society. He’s trained in forensic chromatography, the lab method used to test blood for alcohol and drugs, so he reads the lab’s raw data instead of trusting the one-page summary. He’s a certified practitioner and instructor of Standardized Field Sobriety Testing, which means he’s qualified to teach the same roadside tests the arresting officer was trained on. And he’s a certified Drug Recognition Expert, so when the State says a prescription or a drug impaired you, he knows every step of the officer’s evaluation and where it gets skipped.
That background matters on the injury side too. Blass Law also represents people hurt in car wrecks, 18-wheeler crashes and work accidents, through its Houston personal injury practice. When a drunk or high driver hurts someone, Jay uses the same intoxication evidence to prove it and push the other side’s insurance company for a full recovery.
In August 2023, Governor Greg Abbott appointed Jay to the Texas Indigent Defense Commission, the state commission that funds and sets standards for court-appointed criminal defense in Texas.
Jay was born and raised in Houston. He grew up in the Memorial Villages and still lives in Piney Point Village with his family, where he has served on the Planning & Zoning Commission since 2024. He served on West University Place’s Zoning Board of Adjustment from 2019 to 2023. He has volunteered with the Houston Livestock Show and Rodeo for two decades, including its World’s Championship Bar-B-Que Contest since 2012, and has held leadership roles on Episcopal High School’s Alumni Council. He graduated from Episcopal in 2001 and from SMU in 2005 with a business degree in finance, then earned his law degree at South Texas College of Law in downtown Houston.
Blass Law handles cases across the Houston area, including Harris, Fort Bend, Montgomery and Galveston counties.
Certifications and Memberships
- ACS-CHAL Forensic Lawyer-Scientist (designation from the Chemistry and the Law Division of the American Chemical Society)
- Certified Practitioner in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing
- Certified Instructor in Standardized Field Sobriety Testing
- Certified as a Drug Recognition Expert (DRE)
- Trained in Forensic Chromatography
- Trained in Forensic Drug Analysis
- Trained in Driving Under the Influence of Drugs
- Member of the Harris County Criminal Lawyers Association
- Member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers
- Member of the Texas Criminal Defense Lawyers Association
- Member of the Houston Bar Association
- Member of the American Chemical Society
- Founding Member of the DUI Defense Lawyers Association
- Member of the National College for DUI Defense
If you or someone you love was just arrested, or hurt in a wreck, call Jay’s office at (713) 664-4000 or fill out the form on this page. The consultation is free and confidential, and we’ll tell you what happens next.