Partner Carl H. Perdue appointed to the Senior Lawyers Committee of the Florida Bar

Mr. Eugene K Pettis, President of The Florida Bar, has appointed Carl H. Perdue to a new committee of the Florida Bar, the Senior Lawyers Committee.  In his appointment letter, Mr. Pettis said: “This committee will serve the interests of the profession by fostering an interchange of ideas, sharing accumulated legal knowledge and experience of its members and address issues of particular interest to senior lawyers. We want the committee to identify and enhance the benefits senior lawyers can provide to The Florida Bar, the profession and the community by utilizing such lawyers’ wisdom, expertise, and experience.”

The Committee will address issues from a Florida Bar survey that highlighted the top concerns of members 55 and over:  opportunities for senior lawyers, discounts on products or services, assistance on the sale or closure of a law practice, and help with technology.  The Senior Lawyers Committee is open to all members of the Florida Bar, regardless of age, and will meet throughout the year.

During his 40 years of practice, Mr. Perdue has represented individuals, private businesses, and public companies. For nearly 20 years of those year, Mr. Perdue practiced in the Arabian Gulf Region. Initially, managing one of Saudi Arabia’s most prominent corporate law firms and representing Saudi Aramco (the world’s largest oil company). He later Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), as its principal legal counsel. SABIC is another Top – 100 Global Company, and the world’s largest chemicals producer. During his 16 years with the Company, he advised C-level corporate and affiliate executives and operating affiliate managers, and he was expatriate leader of the Corporate Acquisition and Finance Teams.

Mr. Perdue’s practice focuses on domestic and international acquisitions and divestitures; business advisory and corporate governance; business transactions; corporate and project finance; government and regulatory compliance; litigation, mediation, and arbitration; and private equity and venture capital. He has represented global engineering and construction firms; industrial manufacturers; and international financial institutions as well as a Fortune – 100 global diversified agribusiness corporation. Mr. Perdue has negotiated innumerable high value, cross-border and cross-cultural corporate, commercial, and financial transactions. And, he also has significant international civil and criminal litigation, mediation, and arbitration experience; and a substantial domestic and international government affairs background.

Assouline & Berlowe is proud to announce Mr. Perdue’s involvement in the Senior Lawyers Committee.  Mr. Perdue is available in Assouline & Berlowe’s Miami, Fort Lauderdale, and Boca Raton offices. He heads the firm’s Europe and Middle East Practice. He is a member of the firm’s Latin America Practice, Corporate and Finance Practice, International Law and Arbitration Practice, and Business Litigation and Dispute Resolution Practice.

Please contact Mr. Perdue to discuss your international business needs.

Partner Carl H. Perdue, Esq.

ASSOULINE & BERLOWE, P.A.

1801 N. Military Trail, Suite 160

Boca Raton, Florida 33431

Main:  (561) 361-6566

Fax: (561) 361-6466

Email: CHP@assoulineberlowe.com

http://www.assoulineberlowe.com/

Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment Law, Bankruptcy, Commercial Litigation, and Corporate Law

Miami • Ft. Lauderdale • Boca Raton

Partner Peter Koziol has Russian Patent/Copyright Infringement Case Dismissed

Internal Circuitry

Assouline & Berlowe, P.A. Partner and Patent Attorney Peter Koziol was featured in an article on the front page of the Daily Business Review entitled “Justice Watch:  A New Frontier in IP Law.”  Mr. Koziol discussed a recent dismissal for his client, Passcovery Co. Ltd., regarding alleged patent infringement and copyright infringement.

In 2013, Elcomsoft sued: a programmer;  a rival Russian password security company; and, that rival company’s Director General in the United States for violating the copyright law (under provisions of the U.S. DMCA) and alleged violations of its 2010 and 2011 GPU password hacking patents.

According to pleadings in the case, one of the original programmers for Elcomsoft, Ivan Golubev, broke his ties with Elcomsoft around 2010 and began working with long time rival Russian password recovery company Passcovery Co. Ltd.  According to the record, Passcovery is owned by Denis Gladysh who had also been making competing password recovery software under the Accentsoft brand since at least as early as 1999.

In its Complaint, Elcomsoft claimed that Golubev violated an employment agreement with it in Russia, and stole its ideas and infringed its U.S. Patent when he began working with Passcovery.  However, in support of a motion to dismiss Golubev, Passcovery, Co. Ltd. and Passcovery owner Denis Gladysh denied any wrong doing, said the GPU password hacking was obvious, made it clear that they contended that Elcomsoft forged the employment agreement, and showed that they have no significant ties to the United States. Golubev did not deny that he authored Elcomsoft’s software, but stated in a sworn declaration that the Employment Agreement that Elcomsoft says transfers the rights to the software to  is a fraud.

After reviewing the pleadings and the argument presented by both sides the Federal Court Judge dismissed the case against Passcovery, Golubev and Gladysh on the federal common law doctrine of forum non conveniens.

In her 11 page opinion, the Judge said it was unnecessary to decide whether or not there was any violation of U.S. law or if the Court had jurisdiction over the parties, because all the parties reside in Russia and that there was no evidence that  there was not an adequate remedy to use the Russian Courts.  She found that to take jurisdiction of the case would be inconvenient for the parties, the court, and the U.S. jurors.  Consequently, she declined assuming jurisdiction, and judgment was entered to dismiss the case.

Although the case was filed in the “Rocket Docket” of the Eastern District of Virginia, Peter A. Koziol, Esq. of South Florida firm Assouline & Berlowe defended the case on behalf of the defendants. Mr. Koziol is an internationally recognized Boca Raton based patent attorney that has served as special trial counsel pro hac vice in many international matters and for cases filed in Virginia, Delaware, New Jersey, California and Kansas.  Ccontact Peter below for any Intellectual Property matters.

Partner Peter A. Koziol

Registered Patent Attorney

Intellectual Property Litigation

ASSOULINE & BERLOWE, P.A.

2700 N. Military Trail, Suite 150

Boca Raton, Florida  33431

Main: 561.361.6566

Fax: 561.3616466

Email: PAK@assoulineberlowe.com

http://www.assoulineberlowe.com/

Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment, Creditors’ Rights & Bankruptcy, Business Litigation, Corporate & Finance, Real Estate, International Law

Miami • Ft. Lauderdale • Boca Raton

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ILS’s International Law Quartely – Russia and CIS

Assouline & Berlowe Partner Daniel A. Vielleville authored an article in ILS’s International Law Quarterly, a special note on Russia and Commonwealth of Independent States (CIS).  His article, entitled “Colombia adopts arbitration statute based on the UNCITRAL Model Law” can be found on page 11 of the publication.

Mr. Vielleville discusses the advantages and disadvantages of Law 1563/2012, in force since October 2012, that regulates domestic and international arbitration in Colombia.  The most welcome feature of the new statute is the adoption of the 1985 UNCITRAL Model Arbitration Law, with its 2006 amendments.  For example, the new statute:

1. recognizes both institutional and ad hoc arbitration;
2. acknowledges the power of arbitrators to issue interim or conservatory measures;
3. provides clear definitions of what constitutes an arbitration agreement, the principle of separability of the arbitration agreement and the power of the arbitrators to decide on their own competence (kompetenz–kompetenz), including the negative effect of such authority.

For more analysis of the new statute, view the ILS International Law Quarterly article, linked below.

Colombia adopts arbitration statute based on the UNCITRAL Model Law

Mr. Vielleville, a dual Venezuelan-U.S. attorney, is a partner in the Miami office of Assouline & Berlowe.  He heads the Latin America Practice and the International Business Practice.  For more information about Mr. Vielleville’s international practice, please contact him using the contact information below.

Latin America Practice and the International Business Practice

ASSOULINE & BERLOWE, P.A.

3250 Mary Street, Suite 100

Miami, Florida 33133

Main:  (305) 567-5576

Fax: (305) 567-9343

Email: dev@assoulineberlowe.com

http://www.assoulineberlowe.com/

Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment Law, Bankruptcy, Commercial Litigation, and Corporate Law

Miami • Ft. Lauderdale • Boca Raton

Business Attorney Carl H. Perdue, Esq. Joins Assouline & Berlowe

Assouline & Berlowe is pleased to announce that 40 year business attorney Carl Perdue has joined the firm as Of Counsel.

Carl is formerly the Washington, DC Partner of Miami-based business boutique law firm Ferrell, Schultz, Carter & Fertel.  At Ferrell Schultz Carl headed the International Corporate, Finance, and Regulatory Compliance Groups and the Asset Recovery and Anti-Money Laundering Practices.  With 100 professionals and offices in Latin America and the Middle East (which Carl also directed), the firm also focused on real estate law and wealth management. There, Carl co-authored “Solving the Inherent Discovery Problems in International Arbitration” in the South Florida Legal Guide which also named him one of Florida’s Top Lawyers.

Carl practiced in the Arabian Gulf Region for nearly 20 years. As Managing Attorney of a prominent Saudi firm, and local counsel to Saudi Aramco, he represented global energy, petrochemical, construction, and financials clients.  Later he was primary Legal Advisor to Saudi Basic Industries Corporation (SABIC), the Middle East’s largest quoted company and the world’s largest chemicals producer.  Carl was expatriate leader of SABIC’s Corporate Acquisition and Corporate Finance Teams. The Middle East Economic Digest’s “Report on Saudi Banking” said the negotiating approach created a transaction methodology altering the “rules of the game” in the Gulf’s international credit market. One deal won International Finance magazine’s Deal of the Year Award and was also named Project Finance Loan of the Year by the International Financial Review.

As Director of Government Relations for Castle & Cooke, Inc., Carl managed the international public affairs function; named “one of corporate America’s most effective.” C&C was a Fortune-134 diversified, transnational company with worldwide operations and best known for its Dole and Bumble Bee trade names. His role included business and political risk analysis; lobbying and oversight of the Washington, DC office; and establishing and managing one of the country’s first shareholder-focused political action committees.

Carl’s deep and practical understanding of public policy and State and Federal government operations began upon receiving his law degree.  He was initially appointed Staff Assistant to the Governor of Indiana, the Hon. Otis R. Bowen, MD, and then named Assistant Director of the Indiana Washington Office.  His role requiring analytical, problem-solving, and leadership skills, included advising State agency directors, drafting legislation and regulations, and representing the Governor at numerous government and public events. He also was the Governor’s liaison to the Congress, the Executive, and to public policy groups.  Governor Bowen then nominated Carl to the Commission on Federal Paperwork.  As its General Counsel on the Senior Staff Group, he assisted with organizational design and helped execute the investigations, hearings, and studies programs.  The Commission’s Final Report to the President and the Congress resulted in the adoption of over 500 efficiency and cost-reduction proposals, including Federal Paperwork Reduction Act.

Self-directed at the University, Carl was a full-time Casualty Insurance Underwriter for the Hartford Insurance Group.  And, during three law school years, he worked as a Law Clerk and assisted two highly respected criminal defense lawyers and a distinguished plaintiff’s counsel.  In one case, he authored a federal criminal appellate brief resulting in the unanimous, summary reversal.  That in-depth and practical civil and criminal trial and appellate advocacy experience included substantial client contact; provided a “step-up” to his legal career; and moreover, instilled an appreciation for the importance of the client-lawyer relationship.

Carl is a member of the District of Columbia, Florida and Texas State Bars; the Federal District Court for the Southern District of Florida; the Court of International Trade; and the US Supreme Court.  He is a Certified Florida Circuit Court Civil and a Florida Certified Appellate Court Mediator and a qualified Arbitrator.

Following US Marine Corps service, Carl attended the State University of New York at Buffalo SUNY receiving: the Bachelor’s in Sociology; the Masters in Social Sciences with International Law concentration; and the Juris Doctor degree.  While at SUNY, he won a New York State War Service Scholarship.  Later in his career, Carl attended the University of Miami Law School at Coral Gables, Florida. He was awarded the post-graduate LLM degree in Ocean and Coastal Law.

Continuing Education is an important adjunct to Carl’s practice.  His professional interests are extensive; and he attends seminars, programs, and conferences on a variety of subjects, among others, law, finance, and business.  Representative events include: the Dow Jones Private Equity Advisor’s Conference; the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers – Stetson University Law School’s “White Collar Crime College;” American University’s Washington College of Law Summer Program in International Commercial Arbitration; American Bar Association Construction Law Institute; and Financial Industry Regulatory Authority’s Basic and Advanced Arbitrator e-Learning Courses.

Carl is a member the American Bar Association’s Business Law Section’s White Collar Crime: Corporate Investigations Committee and Criminal Justice Section’s White Collar Crime Committee; the Federal Bar Association; the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers; and the International Bar Association.

Carl’s current website is http://www.chperdue.com, and it will be migrated into the firm’s website shortly.

We are happy to have him join our firm.  Wtih the addition of Carl’s vast legal experience, the firm’s collective experience as attorneys is approximately 200 years.

For more information on Carl or any of the attorneys at the firm, please contact:

ERIC N. ASSOULINE, ESQ.

Business and Bankruptcy Litigation

ASSOULINE & BERLOWE, P.A.

213 E. Sheridan Street, Suite 3

Dania Beach, Florida 33004

Telephone: 954-929-1899

Facsimile: 954-922-6662

Email: ena@assoulineberlowe.com

www.assoulineberlowe.com

Intellectual Property, Labor & Employment Law, Bankruptcy, Commercial Litigation, and Corporate Law

Miami · Ft. Lauderdale · Boca Raton