Howard J. Berlin

“Clients view me as a trusted legal advisor. That’s because I know business from every angle—organization, management, administration, financial, and vision.  What I bring to an insolvency case is the ability to synthesize a large amount of data and recommend the right strategic decisions.” 

--Howard Berlin, Bankruptcy and Creditors’ Rights and Managing Director

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Howard has extensive experience in business growth issues and has successfully reorganized a variety of business enterprises. As the Managing Director for Kluger, Peretz, Kaplan, & Berlin since 1999, he leads the firm in strategic and operational matters.  Other law firms and members of the media often call upon Howard to comment on his management philosophies which are recognized for their emphasis on professional and personal quality of life issues.  

Notably, his management perspective has been of significant value to the counsel he offers his clients. 

“I’ve been intimately acquainted with how different types of entities do business for over 25 years, and there’s not much I haven’t seen.  I’m like a physician who sees the same symptoms over and over and can make a diagnosis and recommend a treatment—though it’s up to the patient to swallow the medicine…Times change but good management, good advisors, and adequate capital are always in style.  That’s how to run a business and how to run a law firm.”

Howard brings more than 25 years of experience representing corporate debtors, secured lenders, creditors’ committees, and individual creditors in federal, bankruptcy, and state court insolvency proceedings. He has helped his clients successfully structure workouts, debt restructurings, and business reorganizations.

Howard's sense of civic responsibility and leadership skill set is reflected in his service as Mayor (2001-2003) and Assistant Mayor and Councilman (2003 – present) of the City of Bal Harbour, Florida.  

From Howard’s Case Files

A Soft Landing for Piper: In the Chapter 11 reorganization of Piper Aircraft Corporation, I worked closely with creditors and Piper management for four years.  Our strategy helped creditors recover 100 percent of their claims and created a new Piper enterprise that thrives again.

**"CV, BV and AV are registered certification marks of Reed Elsevier Properties Inc., used in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies."

Education

• University of Miami School of Law, J.D., 1979
• George Washington University, B.A., 1976
• Circuit Court Mediation Training Program

Bar Admissions & Memberships

• Florida, 1979
• U.S. District Court, Northern, Southern and Middle Districts of Florida
• U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit

Noteworthy

• Super Lawyers, Florida Super Lawyers magazine, 2007, 2008
• Top Lawyers in South Florida, South Florida Legal Guide 2007
• Top Lawyers Bankruptcy, South Florida Legal Guide, The Best Lawyers in America, Bankruptcy and Creditor, Debtor Rights Law, Legal Elite, Best of the Bar, South Florida Business Law Journal, America's Leading Lawyers for Business, Chambers USA, Guide to the World's Leading Insolvency and Restructuring Lawyers

Professional Affiliations

• Florida Bar, Business Law Section, Chair, 1999-2000
• Florida Bar, Bankruptcy U.C.C. Committee, former Chair

Community/Civic Involvement

• The City of Bal Harbour, Florida, Mayor 2001-2003, 2007-current, Councilman 2003-2005 and Assistant Mayor 2005-2007.

Presentations & Publications

"Assignments for the Benefit of Creditors," 1987 revisions to Ch. 727 of the Florida Statutes, co-author