POWER OF ATTORNEY: UTAH's MOST FEARED LAWYERS.

• Author: CAMPBELL, CAROLYN

ASK FOR A LIST OF UTAH'S MOST FEARED LAWYERS AND THE NAMES OF THE SEVEN MEN AND WOMEN FEATURED IN THESE PAGES CROP UP WITH REGULARITY. THEY ARE REFERENCED AGAIN AND AGAIN AS WINNERS OF BOTH CASES AND HONORS, AS LEADERS OF ASSOCIATIONS AND PARTNERS OF FIRMS.

TRACY FOWLER, CHAIRMAN OF THE EXECUTIVE COMMITTEE OF THE LITIGATION SECTION OF THE UTAH STATE BAR, EXPLAINS THAT THE BEST TRIAL LAWYERS POSSESS A COMBINATION OF SIMILAR CHARACTERISTICS. THEY HAVE EXCELLENT TECHNICAL SKILLS, MEANING THEY HAVE THE CAPACITY FOR COGENT ANALYSIS OF DIFFICULT AND SOMETIMES UNFAMILIAR ISSUES. THEY ARE CAPABLE OF EFFECTIVE AND PERSUASIVE ORAL AND WRITTEN COMMUNICATION. THEY ARE WILLING TO INVEST CONSIDERABLE TIME AND EFFORT INTO THE PREPARATION REQUIRED IN COMPLEX LEGAL CASES. BEYOND THAT, THE TRIAL LAWYERS WHO STAND ABOVE THE REST DO SO BECAUSE OF THEIR UNSURPASSED JUDGMENT, CREDIBILITY AND EXPERIENCE.

THE LAWYERS IN THIS STORY POSSESS MOST OF THESE TRAITS. THEY REPRESENT PLAINTIFFS AND DEFENDANTS IN COMPLEX COMMERCIAL LITIGATION. THEIR CLIENTS ARE OFTEN HOUSEHOLD NAMES UTAHNS ENCOUNTER DAILY -- UTILITIES, CORPORATIONS AND GOVERNMENT ENTITIES. THEY ALSO REPRESENT INDIVIDUALS WHOSE NEEDS ARE GREAT. FROM ALLOWING TRAX TO RUN ON MAIN STREET TO FACILITATING THE SALE OF THE Salt Lake Tribune TO FIGHTING FOR THE RIGHTS OF MOUNTAIN FUEL RATE PAYERS, WEIGHTY AND CONTROVERSIAL MATTERS HAVE POSSESSED THESE LAWYERS' LIVES AS THEY ARGUE IN BEHALF OF DECISIONS THAT AFFECT COUNTLESS LIVES.

DAN BERMAN

BERMAN, GAUFIN, TOMSIC, SAVAGE & CAMPBELL

In 1973, Dan Berman was second chair on the original Telex vs. IBM trial that resulted in the largest civil verdict in the history of the United States at that time. "It was in the $300 million range," Berman recalls. When the judgment was announced, Berman was in Paris. "Leaving my hotel room, I came down for breakfast to discover that the judgment was the lead story on the cover of the Paris Herald Tribune, an English-written newspaper. Within three days, IBM's stock price fell over $5 billion," he recalls.

In over four decades of law practice, he's probably handled more complex and significant business litigation than most lawyers in the Intermountain West. He has successfully tried over 15 federal antitrust cases. In the Wexpro Rate case, (Wexpro being the oil and gas subsidiary of Mountain Fuel) he represented the rate payer's interest on behalf of the state of Utah and the Consumer Services Committee, also a state entity, recovering benefits for rate payers of a half billion dollars.

"Mountain Fuel was conducting exploration with the rate payer's money. When there were dry holes, the rate payers were charged the expense. When the exploration was commercially successful, Mountain Fuel paid the cost of exploration and kept the hydrocarbons."

Berman represented Portland General, Oregon's power company, in the high-profile Bonneville Pacific case, which he describes as "the major Utah scandal of the 1990s." While the plaintiffs ended up collecting over $150 million from the other defendants, Berman's client, Portland General, actually recovered $50 million.

He also represented Adnan Khasoggi in the famed Triad Bankruptcy case and in two other suits against the Saudi financier and arms merchant in California. "Triad went bankrupt and the trustee sued him (Khasoggi) for many millions of dollars. We compromised, or settled the litigation for the several lawsuits, and he was still allowed to keep over $20 million." Pacificorp and Utah Power & Light are two other high profile clients he has represented.

Berman began his law career working for Joe Alioto, "the leading plaintiffs antitrust lawyer in the United States," says Berman. "I did plaintiffs work at that time -- now I do more defense work."

Originally from Washington D.C., Berman graduated from Columbia University Law School and moved to Utah in 1960 to teach at the University of Utah Law School. He fell in love with the West and continued practicing law, his lifelong love.

"I think most people would say I have good analytical and persuasive skills" says Berman. Commercial litigator Gary Bendinger agrees. "Berman's personality is perfectly suited for him to be a litigator. He's strong-willed and might seem domineering to some people and overpowering to others - in essence, he's a no-nonsense guy."

Lawyer Dick Burbidge who once worked in Berman's firm, recalls an instance when the two of them served as defense attorneys in an antitrust case. "The opposing attorneys were drawing on unrelated work that the previous firm I had been with was doing to try to disqualify Dan and me from this ongoing antitrust litigation. It's typical of Dan that he did not come into me and whine and scream. He simply said, 'What they're doing is wrong. We're going to stand by you and take it on.' We did and we prevailed." Burbidge recalls. I liked the loyalty, energy and commitment that showed."

Berman's commitment to both the West and law continue. He's a bird hunter, owner of three great Danes and a collector of Western paintings. "My life has been a great experience," he says.

DICK BURBIDGE

BURBIDGE & MITCHELL

"YOU'LL BE THE LAST LAWYER I EVER TALK TO," said the woman who walked into Salt Lake attorney Dick Burbidge's office years ago, without an appointment (not something you could get away with now). Burbidge listened as the woman told him that several years ago her husband died suddenly after using a chemical spray. One lawyer advised her she had no case against the chemical company because the statute of limitation had long run out. Her husband's life insurance company wouldn't pay as he had an...