David H. Levy Partner

dlevy@bergerschatz.com

PRACTICE AREAS: Divorce, Domestic Relations, Family Law, Matrimonial Law

David H. Levy has been managing partner of Berger Schatz since 1997. Mr. Levy counsels clients in all areas of family and matrimonial law, including prenuptial and postnuptial agreements, marital settlements, asset valuations and distributions, parenting agreements, child-custody and child-support matters, and family law settlements. An experienced litigator, he regularly represents individuals in trials and appeals.

Mr. Levy is a member of the American Bar Association (Family Law Section) and the Illinois State Bar Association. For the latter organization he served variously as chairman, vice chairman and secretary of both the Family Law Section Council and the Supreme Court Rules Committee; was a member of the Special Task Force for Attorneys for Children Committee; and is a current member of the Special Committee on Cable TV Programming, the Standing Committee on Unauthorized Practice of Law, and the Child Custody Task Force. On behalf of the Circuit Court of Cook County, Mr. Levy serves on the Special Task Force to Revise Circuit Court Rules. In 1998, he served on the Attorney General of Illinois Statewide Task Force on Court Procedures and Forms.

Mr. Levy has held a number of leadership positions within the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers. At the national level, he has twice served on (including his current election to) the organization’s Board of Governors, and is a former treasurer and member of the Executive Committee. He has served as chairman of numerous AAML committees, including the AICPA/AAML National Conference on Divorce, Public Relations, Law Economics, and Site Selection committees, and has been a member of the Admissions Procedures and the National Written Test committees. On behalf of the Illinois Chapter of the AAML, Mr. Levy has served as president, president-elect, vice president and as a member of the Board of Managers.

A frequently published author, Mr. Levy has written articles on topics ranging from depositions, motions, and business assets to child support orders, among other areas of law. He is a well-known speaker and panelist at legal and business conferences nationwide, lecturing regularly on emerging issues in family and matrimonial law. Recent subjects include pre-trial discovery, preliminary motions and depositions; business valuation, financial and tax matters in divorce cases; child-support guidelines; legislative matters; and psychological evaluations, drug testing and cross-examination in child-custody cases. From 1995 to 2007, Mr. Levy was a moderator of the television show “Illinois Law News You Can Use,” produced by the Illinois State Bar Association.

Mr. Levy is a recipient of the Michael Cohen Award, given for continuing commitment and contributions to the professional education of matrimonial lawyers. He has been named to the peer-recommended Leading Lawyers Network every year since 2003 and has been named to the list of Super Lawyers from 2005 to 2011. Mr. Levy is also one of a select group of attorneys to earn a peer rating of AV® Preeminent™ by Martindale-Hubbell®.

Mr. Levy is actively involved in a number of Chicago-area civic, cultural, and social-service organizations. He has served on the Board of Directors for the Legal Aid Society of Metropolitan Family Services, and served variously as director, vice president, and president of the Lincoln Central Association. He served as chairman of the Platform Committee of the Northfield Village Caucus.

Mr. Levy is a strong supporter of education and student programs. He has been a member of the New Trier Citizens League, was chairman of the Avoca School District #37 Caucus Committee, and most recently served as staging chairman for the New Trier High School Graduation Dance Committee.

Mr. Levy was co-chair at a national conference in Las Vegas in May 2010. He was selected to serve on the ISBA family law section council for 2009-2010 and will do so again for 2010-2011. He has also been nominated to be on the National Board of Governors for the AAML for 2010-2012.

Education

• Illinois Institute of Technology/Chicago-Kent College of Law, J.D., 1976
• Ohio University, B.G.S., 1973

Bar admissions

Mr. Levy is admitted to practice in Illinois, and before the United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit.
Publications

• "Hunting Goodwill," Family Advocate, American Bar Association (Winter 2003).
• "Everything you Wanted to Know About Drug/Alcohol Screening in Five Minutes or Less," 101+ Practical Solutions for the Family Lawyer, American Bar Association (Spring 2003).
• "A Critique of the Proposed Uniform Child Custody Jurisdiction and Enforcement Act," Journal of the American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (1999).
• "Use of the MMPI I & II in Contested Custody Proceedings," FairShare Magazine (1997).
• "Commingling, Transmutation & Reimbursement," Family Law Handbook (chapter), Illinois State Bar Association (1995).
• "Right to Confer with Witness During Cross-Examination," Family Law Newsletter, Illinois State Bar Association (1994), Family Law Newsletter (1991), Chicago Law Bulletin (1989).

Presentations

• “Asset or Income, Double-Dip Concept of Income in Divorce,” AICPA/AAML National Conference on Divorce (2008).
• “Past, Present and Future — Lawyers and Psychologists Working Together,” Reconceptualizing Child Custody, ABA/APA National Conference on Child Custody (2008).
• “Maintenance, Lifestyle & Standard of Living,” Judge’s Round Table, Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (2008).
• “Asset Protection — A Divorce Law Perspective,” Tenth Annual Family Law Seminar, Kentucky Chapter/Louisville Bar Association, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (2007).
• “Divorce and Estate Planning,” Bank of America Seminar (2007).\
• “Child Representatives and Training for Guardians ad Litem in Child Custody Cases,” The Family Law Committee of the Lake County (Illinois) Bar Association, The Circuit Court of Lake County (2006).
• “Asset Protection — A Divorce Law Perspective,” National Conference on Divorce, AICPA/AAML Conference (2006).
• “Effective Discovery in Family Law Cases,” Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (2005).
• “Potential ‘Pit-Falls’ for the Family Law Practitioner,” Hinshaw & Culbertson National Legal Malpractice & Risk Management Conference (2005).
• “Discover Discovery,” Northern Trust Bank Seminar (2005).
• “Successfully Analyzing, Negotiating and Trying Your Child Custody Cases,” Illinois Institute for Continuing Legal Education (2005).
• “Business Valuation, Financial and Tax Issues Affecting Divorce,” Matrimonial Law Seminar, American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (Illinois Chapter)/Trenwith Valuation, LLC (2005).
• “Divorce and Estate Planning,” Northern Trust Bank Seminar (2004).
• “Taxes Affecting S-Corporation Earnings,” AAML/AICPA National Divorce Conference (2004).
• “Business Valuation, Financial and Tax Issues Affecting Divorce,” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (Illinois Chapter)/BDO Seidman LLP, Matrimonial Law Seminar (2004).
• “The ADA and You (Everything you did not want to, but needed to know about the American With Disabilities Act),” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, Chicago, Illinois (2003).
• “Impact of Custody and Visitation Orders on Children,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education: 2nd Annual Family Law Conference (2003).
• “Family Law 101: Learn from the Experts’ Tricks of the Trade: Negotiating the Best Possible Settlement for Your Client,” Illinois State Bar Association (2002).
• “Business Valuation, Financial and Tax Issues Affecting Divorce,” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers (Illinois Chapter)/The Investigative Valuation Group L.L.C., Matrimonial Law Seminar (2002).
• “Hot Tips Program - Everything You Wanted to Know About Drug Testing,” American Bar Association National Family Law Seminar (2001).
• “Evidentiary Requirements in the Trial of a Contested Custody Case,” Circuit Court of Cook County Child Representative Continuing Legal Education Seminar (2000).
• “Basic Illinois Divorce Law and Initial Interviews: Supreme Court Rule 213 Interrogatories, New Legislation and Case Law Update,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (2000).
• “Cross-Examining Psychologists in Child Custody Cases,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1999).
• Key Issues in Domestic Relations Update on Goodwill in Business Valuations,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (1999).
• “Now the Judges Shall Decide!” panelist, Clifton Gunderson, L.L.C. Certified Public Accountants Seminar: Achieving the Goal - Litigation Issues (1998).
• “How to Prepare Your Client For A Forensic Custody Evaluation,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1996).
• “Deviation from Child Support Guidelines,” Chicago Bar Association Young Lawyers Section (1996).
• “What Partners Expect From Associates; What Associates Expect from Partners,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1996).
• “Examination of Psychological Expert in Custody Cases,” American Bar Association: National Family Law Seminar, Williamsburg, Virginia (1996).
• “Uniform Interstate Family Support Act,” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers, Kauai, Hawaii (1996).
• “Uniform Interstate Family Support Act,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1994).
• “Legislative/Lobbying Process,” Michigan State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1994).
• “Hearsay and Other Evidentiary Problems with Child Custody Cases,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1993).
• “MMPI and MMPI-2 Introduction and Overview,” American Bar Association: National Family Law Seminar, Palm Springs, California (1993).
• “Illinois Supreme Court Rule 220 and Use of Experts in Matrimonial Cases,” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers/Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (1993).
• “Commingling, Transmutation & Reimbursement,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1992).
• “Child Support,” Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education Family Law Seminar (1992).
• “Use of Psychological Tests in Custody Cases,” Illinois State Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1991).
• Chicago Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1991).
• “Winning Crucial Preliminary Motions in Domestic Relations Court,” American Academy of Matrimonial Lawyers/Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education (1990).
• “Initial Client Contact and Interview,” Chicago Bar Association Family Law Seminar (1990).
• Illinois Institute of Continuing Legal Education: Child Support and Maintenance Seminar (1990).
• “Role of Psychologist in Custody Valuations,” American Ortho-Psychiatrist Convention (1990).

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