James L. Bernard

James Bernard focuses on financial services and general commercial litigation, including securities and consumer class actions, commodities and derivatives, audit malpractice and related issues, white-collar criminal defense, and on representing clients before the New York State Attorney General’s Office.

James has served as president of the Federal Bar Foundation and as co-chair of the New York State-Federal Judicial Council Advisory Group.

James has been recognized by Benchmark Litigation, Legal 500 and Super Lawyers, and was awarded the Burton Award for distinguished legal writing. The National Law Journal also named him a “Litigation Trailblazer” in 2017 for leading a team that obtained what is considered to be the largest civil forfeiture in history on behalf of victims of Iran-sponsored terrorism.

• Accounting and Auditor Liability Defense
• Asset Management
• Broker-Dealer Litigation
• Capital Markets / Securities
• Commodities / Derivatives / Energy
• Consumer Financial Services Defense
• Directors and Officers
• Financial Services Litigation, Regulation and Enforcement
• Litigation
• Real Estate Litigation
• Regulatory Compliance and Enforcement Actions
• Securities and Commodities
• White Collar & Internal Investigations

• Grant Thornton International in all litigations arising out of the collapse of Parmalat
• CohnReznick in audit related matters
• HSBC in commercial banking class action litigation
• JPMorgan Chase in consumer mortgage class action litigation
• American Express in class action litigations concerning credit and gift cards
• Grant Thornton LLP in audit related matters and securities litigations
• McKinsey & Company in commercial litigation and general corporate advice
• Goldman Sachs in litigation involving distressed debt trading
• Delta Financial Corporation in a class action securities litigation
• Alliance Pharmaceutical Corp. in a class action securities litigation
• AIG in Enron Corp. bankruptcy litigation
• Sempra Energy Trading Corp., Gerald Metals, Inc. and J. Aron & Company in trading, commodities and contract litigations and arbitrations
• Various European metal trading companies in RICO litigation against Russian entities and individuals
• Chesapeake Energy, Ernst & Young, Federated Department Stores, Inc., Priceline.com and World Jewish Congress in matters before the New York State Attorney General
• Tosco Corporation in commercial litigation
• Oppenheimer & Co. Inc. in breach of contract action
• Kemper and Travelers insurance companies in commercial litigation
• Nomura Securities and UBS in gender discrimination lawsuits
• The Anheuser-Busch Companies in an advisory capacity on various matters
• Individual defendants in securities fraud, bank fraud and other white-collar criminal matters
• Various entities and individuals in confidential criminal investigations and related proceedings
• Individual plaintiffs in opt-out litigations in Cendant Corp. and Nortel Networks Inc.

• Best Lawyers in America, Commercial Litigation, 2023
• Legal Aid Society's 2021 Pro Bono Publico Award
• Benchmark Litigation, Litigation Star
• The Legal 500 United States
• National Law Journal, Litigation Trailblazer
• Super Lawyers

• President, Federal Bar Foundation
• Co-Chair, Advisory Group, New York State-Federal Judicial Council
• Member, Joint Committee on Local Rules in the S.D.N.Y. and E.D.N.Y.
• Treasurer, Federal Bar Council
• Member, Federal Bar Council
• Member, Federal Bar Council Inn of Court
• Director, Federal Bar Council Foundation
• Member, Committee on Grievances, CJA Panel of Attorneys–Eastern District of New York
• Member, Ethics Committee, The Association of the Bar of the City of New York

• Adjunct Professor of Law, Fordham University School of Law, Professional Responsibility
• Former Adjunct Professor of Law, Brooklyn Law School, Professional Responsibility
• Participant, Sedona Conference on Complex Litigation Reform

• Speaker, FIA’s 39th Annual Law & Compliance Division Conference on the Regulation of Futures, Derivatives and OTC Products, May 3-5, 2017
• Speaker, Current Ethical Issues for In-House Counsel, New York City Bar Association, New York, NY, June 6, 2016
• Panelist, "Solving the Privilege Problem," Association of Certified E-Discovery Specialists (ACEDS) Annual Conference, New York, NY, April 18-20, 2016
• Panelist, "Ethics," ABA Derivatives and Futures Law Committee Meeting, Naples, FL, January 23, 2016
• Panelist, The Lawyer’s Duty to Check His/Her Facts, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, New York, NY, March 11, 2015
• Speaker, Ethics for In-House Counsel: New Developments & Future Challenges, Fordham Law School, New York, NY, March 20, 2014
• Speaker, Ethics, Privilege & The Digital Age, Stroock & Stroock & Lavan LLP, New York, NY, February 6, 2014
• Panelist, The Business and Ethics of Managing a 21st Century Law Firm, Fordham Law School, New York, NY, January 28, 2013
• Panelist, Staying Out of Trouble: What Every Attorney Must Know About Ethics 2012, Practising Law Institute, New York, NY, December 17, 2012
• Panelist, 'Bet the Company' Litigation 2012: Best Practices for Complex Cases, Practising Law Institute, New York, NY, September 25, 2012
• Current Ethical Issues for In-House Counsel & Those Who Advise Them, New York City Bar Association, May 24, 2011
• Current Issues In Auditor Litigation: Selective Waiver of Work Product Privilege and In Pari Delicto, J.H. Cohn, May 9, 2011
• Panelist, Current Ethical Issues in Complex Litigations, 'Bet the Company' Litigation 2010: Best Practices for Complex Cases, Practising Law Institute, New York, NY, November 9, 2010
• Panelist, 'Bet the Company' Litigation 2010: Best Practices for Complex Cases, Practising Law Institute, New York, NY, November 10, 2009
• Ethics of Witness Preparation, Federal Bar Council Winter Bench & Bar Conference, February 19, 2007
• Ethical Issues In Pro Bono Representation, New York City Bar Association, February 8, 2007

• Co-author, “Rent Regulation Law Signals New Era for NY Real Estate,” Stroock Special Bulletin, March 13, 2019
• Co-author, “2019 Annual Overview of California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act,” Stroock Client Memorandum, March 2019
• Co-author, “2018 Annual Overview of California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act,” Stroock Client Memorandum, March 2018
• Co-author, “2017 Annual Overview of California’s Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act,” Stroock Client Memorandum, March 2017
• Co-author, “Appointment of New FCC Chair Could Lead to Reduced TCPA Litigation,” New York Law Journal, March 13, 2017
• Co-author, “The Movie ‘Spotlight’ and Legal Ethics,” New York Law Journal, June 14, 2016
• Co-author, "Ambac Assurance Corp. v. Countrywide Home Loans, Inc.: New York Court of Appeals Rejects Expansion of the Common Interest Exception to Waiver of Attorney-Client Privilege," Stroock Special Bulletin, June 14, 2016
• Co-author, "2016 Annual Overview of California's Unfair Competition Law and Consumers Legal Remedies Act," Stroock Client Memorandum, March 2016
• Co-author, "Privileged Today, But Maybe Not Tomorrow," Stroock Special Bulletin, November 17, 2015
• Co-author, "The 'Ethic' of Getting Up to Speed 'Technologically,'" The New York Law Journal, December 10, 2013
• Co-author, "When a Client Post-Trial Says: 'I Perjured Myself,'" The New York Law Journal, August 13, 2013
• Co-author, "Arbitration Decisions Update and Overview," Stroock Client Memorandum, April 4, 2013
• Co-author, "E-discovery: Tips for identifying and preserving ESI," InsideCounsel, September 18, 2012
• Co-author, "E-discovery: How a records management policy can save you time and money," InsideCounsel, September 4, 2012
• Co-author, "The Second Circuit Ruling on Attorney Advertising: What Are the Current Do's and Don'ts?" Bloomberg Law Reports, April 12, 2010
• "The Role of Courts in Deciding Ethics Issues," Federal Bar Council Quarterly, June 2009
• "Mass Actions and CAFA," A Practitioner's Guide to Class Actions, American Bar Association, 2009
• "Justice Marshall and the Attorney-Client Privilege," Federal Bar Council Quarterly, March 2008
• "Speaking with Jeffrey Toobin," Federal Bar Council Quarterly, March 2008
• "Trick With No Treat: Sanctioning Lawyers for Engaging in Trickery," Federal Bar Council Quarterly, September 2007
• "The 2000 Amendment to the Federal Rules of Civil Procedure," ALI-ABA Civil Practice and Litigation Techniques in Federal and State Courts, January 2005

New York

U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York; U.S. District Court, Eastern District of New York; U.S. District Court, Northern District of New York; U.S. District Court, District of Colorado; U.S. District Court, Northern District of Illinois

U.S. Court of Appeals, Second Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit; U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit

J.D., cum laude, Fordham University School of Law, 1995; Order of the Coif; Peter J. O'Connor Prize; Fordham Law Alumni Association Medal in Constitutional Law

A.B., magna cum laude, Bowdoin College, 1989

Clerk, The Hon Alvin K. Hellerstein, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 1998-1999

Clerk, The Hon. Loretta A. Preska, U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York, 1997-1998