Barry H. Berke, Co-chair of the Litigation Department, is a nationally recognized trial lawyer who represents officers, directors, professionals and corporations in sensitive and high-profile investigations and proceedings. Mr. Berke has handled major matters on behalf of his clients involving all aspects of white collar crime, including allegations of securities fraud, accounting and bank fraud, RICO and FCPA violations, tax offenses, bribery, bid-rigging, and embezzlement. Mr. Berke also has represented prominent corporations in class action and other complex commercial litigation. Some of his notable representations include securing the acquittal of a Deutsche Bank investment professional in a criminal case that the government described as its largest tax shelter prosecution, successfully representing the head of a multibillion-dollar investment fund indicted for violations of the Foreign Corrupt Practices Act, and winning summary judgment for client JP Morgan Chase in a lawsuit brought by Bank of America, relating to CDOs in the wake of the financial crisis.
Mr. Berke is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers. He has been repeatedly recognized by Chambers USA, Legal 500 and Benchmark Litigation as one of the leading white collar criminal defense lawyers in the United States. In 2012, Chambers USA ranked Mr. Berke in its top band for his success as both a trial lawyer nationwide and a white collar criminal defense lawyer, recognizing him to be “the cream of the crop” for trial work, “an incredibly sharp legal mind and an awesome trial lawyer,” who is known for his “great connection with juries.” Legal 500 in 2011 called Mr. Berke “one of the most high-profile and sought after white-collar attorneys in New York.” Benchmark Litigation has consistently named him a litigation star, noting in its 2015 directory that he is “acknowledged by peers on a nearly unanimous basis,” and naming him “the go-to guy for white collar trial work.” The National Law Journal profiled Mr. Berke as part of a special report on five winning trial attorneys for 2011. Lawdragon has recognized Mr. Berke several times, including naming him to the publication’s Lawdragon 500 Leading Lawyers list for 2013-2014, and describing him as “equally adept at convincing authorities not to bring charges … and at convincing juries to acquit,” in a Lawdragon “Limelight” profile in 2013. Mr. Berke was also included in the Law360 2011 Most Valuable Player list, one of only four lawyers named nationally in the area of white collar criminal defense, and named in 2010 and 2014 as one of the “Top 10 Lawyers in New York” by Super Lawyers.
