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Bienert Katzman Littrell Williams LLP is happy to announce that partner Whitney Z. Bernstein has been named one of the Daily Journal’s 2025 Top White Collar Lawyers, a prestigious recognition from California’s leading legal publication. This honor marks Whitney’s second recognition by the Daily Journal this year, following her selection to the publication’s Top 100 Lawyers list in September, and her second career appearance on the Top White Collar Lawyers list.
This recognition reflects Whitney’s track record of excellence in high-stakes white collar defense and investigations. Whitney represents individuals and companies in sensitive, complex matters involving government inquiries, criminal enforcement, and parallel civil proceedings. She is known for her practical judgment, strategic advocacy, and steady leadership in matters that require discretion, diligence, and decisive action. Clients turn to her for counsel in engagements that often span multiple jurisdictions and agencies, as well as for proactive advice on risk mitigation and compliance considerations arising from investigative developments.
Whitney’s recent trial work underscores the depth of her courtroom experience and the confidence clients place in her to handle matters of extraordinary complexity. Earlier this year, she served as defense counsel for a former Qualcomm executive in a five-week federal criminal trial involving allegations of a $180 million wire fraud and money laundering scheme centered on highly technical intellectual property. This summer, in the Eastern District of New York, she was trial counsel in an antitrust and consumer class action against American Express in which Whitney and the team secured a significant plaintiff-side victory, obtaining a $12.5 million jury verdict. These results highlight not only her versatility across practice areas but also her ability to present complex facts effectively to juries.
Whitney is an integral part of BKLW’s nationally recognized litigation practice, bringing skill and creativity to cases that demand both technical sophistication and effective courtroom advocacy. She is ranked by Chambers USA for Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations and was named to Lawdragon’s 500 Leading Litigators in America for 2025. Best Lawyers honored her as “Lawyer of the Year” for Criminal Defense: General Practice in Orange County in 2023 and has recognized her for White Collar Criminal Defense since 2021. In addition to this year’s Top White Collar Lawyers list, the Daily Journal has included Whitney among its Top 100 Lawyers (2025), Top Women Attorneys (2024), Top 40 Under 40 (2023), and Top White Collar Lawyers (2022).
We congratulate Whitney on this well-deserved honor and on a year of outstanding professional achievement. Her continued recognition by the Daily Journal underscores the excellence of her practice and the strength of BKLW’s commitment to delivering exceptional results in white collar and investigations matters.