Overview
Dan Berman co-founded and serves as the Executive Chairman of Wood, Smith, Henning & Berman, LLP. In his role as Chairman, and previously as the firm’s Managing Partner, Dan’s responsibilities include high-level firm management, execution of the firm’s strategic vision, and maintenance of the firm's overall effective operational management. Under Dan’s leadership, WSHB has grown from a regional California based firm to one that is recognized today as a leading national firm of 400 plus attorneys with strong capabilities stretching from coast to coast. Embracing the use of technology, internal data analytics, AI and improved, more efficient processes, Dan utilizes industry leading protocol and alternative fee programs to drastically change and innovate the manner in which legal services are delivered to the firm’s clients.
In his legal practice representing Fortune 500 companies and mid-market businesses, Dan is a recognized authority on commercial and business law. He has received Martindale-Hubbell’s highest rating of “AV Preeminent” and has been selected a California “Super Lawyer” on numerous occasions. Dan’s legal work spans matters involving business, professional liability, real estate, intellectual property, entertainment, and construction-related issues. He has worked closely for many years with the domestic and London insurance markets, has successfully tried numerous complex cases to verdict and has been instrumental in several groundbreaking favorable rulings in the appellate realm.
Dan is a founding member of the Young Presidents’ Organization's Pacific Coast Gold Chapter and previously served as Chapter Chairman. He formerly served on the Board of Directors for the YPO Santa Monica Bay Charitable Foundation and a Board Member of the YPO Pacific Region Board. He serves and has served on numerous non-profit boards, including the Claims and Litigation Management Alliance (CLM) Advisory Board, Palisades Malibu YMCA Advisory Board and the City of Hope National Insurance Industry Council Board of Directors. Dan has been selected several times by the Los Angeles Business Journal as one of the 500 Most Influential People in Los Angeles.
Credentials
Education
- Loyola Law School (J.D., 1992)
- University of California, Santa Cruz (B.A., 1989)
Licensed to Practice in
- California
Community
Community Activities
- Board of Managers, Palisades-Malibu YMCA Arbitrator (Pro Bono)
- Board of Directors, ClaimVets
- Board of Governors, Loyola Law School; 1999-2000
- Los Angeles County Superior Court DARE America
- Legal Board of Directors
- Board of Governors, 1999-2004
- Coach of several youth sports teams, 1999-2000
- YPO Santa Monica Bay Charitable Foundation Board of Directors
Memberships
- Firm Chairman, Wood Smith Henning & Berman LLP (2015 – Present)
- Managing Partner, Wood Smith Henning & Berman LLP (2007 – 2015)
- Young Presidents' Organization Santa Monica Bay Chapter (YPOSMB), (2009 – Present)
- Instructor at the Litigation Management Institute (LMI) at Columbia University Law School
- CLM Advisory Board
- CLM Professional Liability Advisory Board
- Council on Litigation Management, Professional Liability Committee
- California Building Industry Association Legal Action Subcommittee
- Technology Committee Member, Defense Research Institute
- National Association of Home Builders Construction Law Attorney Forum
- Building Industry Association of Southern California
- Association of Southern California Defense Counsel (ASCDC)
- Risk and Insurance Management Society, Inc. (RIMS)
- Trial Law Institute
- Diversity Law Institute
- Quarterly Contributor to Residential Design and Build Magazine