Kramer Levin Partners Harold Weinberger and Barry Berke Named American College of Trial Lawyers Fellows

Kramer Levin’s Harold P. Weinberger, partner and head of firm’s Advertising Group, and Barry H. Berke, partner and co-chair of the firm’s White Collar Defense and SEC Regulatory practice, have been inducted as Fellows into the American College of Trial Lawyers (ACTL), joining a select group of litigators in one of the nation’s premier legal associations. The induction ceremony took place on Saturday, February 28th during the College’s 59th Annual Meeting in Puerto Rico. The ACTL extends fellowships by invitation only and after careful investigation, to those experienced trial lawyers who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest standards of ethical conduct, professionalism, civility and collegiality. In order to qualify for the honor, lawyers must have a minimum of 15 years of trial experience. There are approximately 300 fellows in New York State. Mr. Weinberger and Mr. Berke were the only two attorneys sworn in from the state of New York this year.

“This is a wonderful honor for Harold and Barry,” said Paul S. Pearlman, Kramer Levin’s managing partner. “The American College of Trial Lawyers is highly selective, and they are joining an elite group of the nation’s top litigators, including our litigation department head and firm co-chair, Gary Naftalis.”

Mr. Weinberger is a general commercial litigator and regularly advises clients on prospective advertising and has been lead counsel in the litigation of many false advertising cases under the Lanham Act, representing plaintiffs and defendants, as well as other complex intellectual property matters at the trial and appellate levels and in arbitrations. Mr. Weinberger has been recognized as one of The Best Lawyers in America in Advertising Law in 2007 and 2008. He is listed in Super Lawyers, a special supplement to The New York Times, in 2006 and 2007, and in Chambers USA – America’s Leading Business Lawyers (2006, 2007, 2008 and 2009). The 2008 edition of Benchmark: Litigation ranks Mr. Weinberger one of New York’s “Litigation Stars.”

Mr. Berke has extensive trial experience in all phases of criminal, regulatory and civil matters. He was profiled in The American Lawyer’s “Young Litigators Fab Fifty” as one of the 50 leading litigation attorneys in the United States under the age of 45. Mr. Berke also was selected by The Best Lawyers in America as one of the leading white-collar criminal defense lawyers in the United States and was recognized as one of the “Top 100 Lawyers in New York” by Super Lawyers. In addition, Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business recognized Mr. Berke as a leading litigator in white-collar crime and commercial litigation.

The American College of Trial Lawyers is an honorary association composed of the best of the trial bar from the United States and Canada and is widely considered to be the premier professional trial organization in America. Founded in 1950, The College of Trial is dedicated to maintaining and improving the standards of trial practice, the administration of justice and the ethics of the profession. Through its Board of Regents, its general committees and its state and province committees, the College engages in a wide variety of activities to further those purposes.