Elizabeth F Bernhardt
Of Counsel, New York
Elizabeth F Bernhardt
Of Counsel, New York
Elizabeth F. Bernhardt’s practice focuses on white collar criminal and regulatory defense. She has represented clients in investigations by U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the SEC, FINRA, New York District Attorney’s Offices, the Department of Justice, the CFTC, and the New York State Attorney General’s Office. Elizabeth also frequently advises clients in the context of internal investigations. She has argued over 70 appeals in state and federal courts. Super Lawyers has recognized Elizabeth on its New York Metro Super Lawyers list for business litigation.
Elizabeth is a long-time lecturer at Columbia Law School, teaching a year-long course called “Legal Practice.”
Prior to joining the firm, Elizabeth practiced with Simpson Thacher & Bartlett, served as Supervisor in the Appeals Bureau of the Bronx County District Attorney’s Office, and taught at Fordham University School of Law. She has served on many boards and committees, including the New York State Continuing Legal Education Board. She is proficient in Spanish.
Elizabeth F. Bernhardt’s practice focuses on white collar criminal and regulatory defense. She has represented clients in investigations by U.S. Attorney’s Offices, the SEC,…
Education
Columbia Law School (J.D., 1988); Columbia University (Ph.D., 1977; M.A., 1969 (English)); Barnard College (B.A., 1966)
Bar Admissions
New York State; U.S. District Courts for the Southern and Eastern Districts of New York; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit; U.S. Supreme Court
Activities and Affiliations
Member, The Association of the Bar of the City of New York
Member, New York State Bar Association (Committee on Court of Appellate Jurisdiction)
Former Member, New York State CLE Board
Securities and Regulatory Enforcement
Represented bank executive in SEC investigation of alleged bank fraud.
Represented employees of clearing house in SEC investigation of alleged Reg SHO violations.
Represented controller of S&P 500 company in SEC fraud investigation and class action securities litigation.
Represented fund and its chief executive in SEC investigation of alleged fraud and rules violations.
Read MoreWhite Collar Defense
Represented securities broker in Department of Justice securities fraud prosecution.
Represented insurance agency and executives in Department of Justice insurance fraud investigation.
Represented business owner in Department of Justice investigation into alleged commercial fraud.
Represented stock broker convicted of securities fraud in plea and sentencing phases of case.
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Super Lawyers once again named C&G co-founder Mark S. Cohen and partner Jonathan S. Abernethy to the Super Lawyers list of the Top 100 lawyers in the New York metropolitan area.
Super Lawyers and Rising Stars are annual lists of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only 5 percent of the lawyers in each state are selected as Super Lawyers, and only 2.5 percent are selected as Rising Stars.
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Super Lawyers list are:
- Jonathan S. Abernethy, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Kwaku Andoh, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Luke Appling, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Elizabeth Bernhardt, Business Litigation
- Karen H. Bromberg, Intellectual Property
- Jason Brown, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Joanna K. Chan, Securities Litigation
- Mark S. Cohen, Business Litigation
- Gale Dick, Business Litigation
- Christian R. Everdell, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Robert J. Gavigan, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Lawrence T. Gresser, Business Litigation
- Oliver S. Haker, Business Litigation
- Johannes Jonas, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Nicholas J. Kaiser, Real Estate
- David F. Lisner, Business Litigation
- Ellen Paltiel, General Litigation
- Douglas J. Pepe, Business Litigation
- Matthew V. Povolny, Business Litigation
- Bonnie J. Roe, Securities & Corporate Finance
- Stephen M. Sinaiko, Business Litigation
- Mark Spatz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Daniel H. Tabak, Business Litigation
- Scott D. Thomson, Business Litigation
- Alexandra Wald, Business Litigation
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Rising Stars list are:
- Sharon L. Barbour, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Randall W. Bryer, Business Litigation
- Shannon A. Daugherty, Business Litigation
- Drew S. Dean, General Litigation
- Christine M. Jordan, General Litigation
- William Kalema, Business Litigation
- Phoebe King, Business Litigation
- Sri Kuehnlenz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Marvin J. Lowenthal, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Barbara K. Luse, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Alexandra Theobald, Business Litigation
- Myia Williams, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Benjamin Zhu, General Litigation
Super Lawyers named C&G cofounder Mark S. Cohen one of the Top 10 lawyers in the New York metropolitan area. Partners Jonathan S. Abernethy and Karen H. Bromberg have also been named to the Super Lawyers list of the Top 100 lawyers in the New York metropolitan area. Additionally, Karen has been recognized as one of the Top 50 women lawyers within the same region.
Super Lawyers and Rising Stars are annual lists of outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only 5 percent of the lawyers in each state are selected as Super Lawyers, and only 2.5 percent are selected as Rising Stars.
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Super Lawyers list are:
- Jonathan S. Abernethy, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Kwaku Andoh, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Luke Appling, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Elizabeth Bernhardt, Business Litigation
- Colin C. Bridge, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Karen H. Bromberg, Intellectual Property
- Jason Brown, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Joanna K. Chan, Securities Litigation
- Mark S. Cohen, Business Litigation
- S. Gale Dick, Business Litigation
- Christian R. Everdell, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Robert J. Gavigan, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Lawrence T. Gresser, Business Litigation
- Oliver S. Haker, Business Litigation
- Johannes Jonas, Mergers & Acquisitions
- Nicholas J. Kaiser, Real Estate
- Jeffrey I. Lang, Civil Litigation: Defense
- David F. Lisner, Business Litigation
- Ellen Paltiel, General Litigation
- Douglas J. Pepe, Business Litigation
- Matthew V. Povolny, Business Litigation
- Nathaniel P. T. Read, Business Litigation
- Bonnie J. Roe, Securities & Corporate Finance
- Stephen M. Sinaiko, Business Litigation
- Mark Spatz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- C. Evan Stewart, Securities Litigation
- Daniel H. Tabak, Business Litigation
- Scott D. Thomson, Business Litigation
- Alexandra Wald, Business Litigation
The C&G lawyers recognized on the New York Metro Rising Stars list are:
- Sharon L. Barbour, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Randall W. Bryer, Business Litigation
- Shannon A. Daugherty, Business Litigation
- Drew S. Dean, General Litigation
- Jesse Greenwald, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Christine M. Jordan, General Litigation
- William Kalema, Business Litigation
- Sri Kuehnlenz, Civil Litigation: Defense
- Marvin J. Lowenthal, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Barbara K. Luse, Criminal Defense: White Collar
- Benjamin Zhu, General Litigation
Super Lawyers ranks outstanding lawyers who have attained a high degree of peer recognition and professional achievement. Only five percent of the lawyers in each state are selected as Super Lawyers, and only 2.5 percent are selected as Rising Stars.
Super Lawyers
Jonathan S Abernethy: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Kwaku Andoh: Mergers & Acquisitions
Elizabeth Bernhardt: Business Litigation
Thomas E Bezanson: Personal Injury – Products: Defense
Colin C Bridge: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Karen H Bromberg: Intellectual Property
Jason Brown: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Joanna K Chan: Securities Litigation
Mark S Cohen: Business Litigation
S Gale Dick: Business Litigation
Christian R Everdell: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Lawrence T Gresser: Business Litigation
Oliver S Haker: Business Litigation
Johannes Jonas: Mergers & Acquisitions
Nicholas J Kaiser: Real Estate
Jeffrey I. Lang: Business Litigation
Melissa H Maxman: Antitrust Litigation
Ellen Paltiel: General Litigation
Nathaniel P T Read: Business Litigation
Bonnie J Roe: Securities & Corporate Finance
Stephen M Sinaiko: Business Litigation
C Evan Stewart: Securities Litigation
Daniel H Tabak: Business Litigation
Scott D Thomson: Business Litigation
Alexandra Wald: Business Litigation
Ronald F Wick: Antitrust Litigation
Rising Stars
Luke Appling: Civil Litigation
Sharon L Barbour: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Drew S Dean: General Litigation
William Kalema: Business Litigation
Sri Kuehnlenz: Civil Litigation
Winnifred A Lewis: Securities Litigation
Marvin J Lowenthal: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Barbara K Luse: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Matthew V Povolny: Business Litigation
Benjamin Zhu: Criminal Defense: White Collar
Elizabeth F Bernhardt was featured alongside her two daughters in an article titled, “It’s All Relative,” by Columbia Law School. Elizabeth and her daughters, Doris and Sophia, are all faculty at Columbia Law School.
Last year saw a sharp increase in investigations targeting the illicit flows of funds through financial institutions. In three prominent enforcement actions in 2012—against ING, Standard Chartered Bank and HSBC—prosecutors and regulators extracted massive fines for conduct ranging from intentional concealment of illicit transactions to ineffective monitoring.
A discussion about the erroneous predictions made about the outcomes of this case. Why were they made and how can we learn from these examples?
This alert discusses the importance of oral advocacy in any case and what improvements are needed in order save this method of argument from extinction.
The implications of the Galleon ruling in terms of white collar defense - specifically the growing use of wiretapping during insider trading investigations.
This article seeks to manage the expectations of senior executives, companies, and their counsel in light of the recent wave of lawsuits and criminal investigations of the officers and directors of failed banks as well as those who did business with them.