Effective January 1, 2010, Berliner Cohen increases its partner ranks by electing Christine Long and Aaron Valenti to the partnership at the 56-attorney law firm with offices in San Jose and Merced.
“We are so pleased with the addition of Christine and Aaron to our partnership, and we look forward to their continued success,” said James Cashman, Berliner Cohen managing partner.
Christine Long has been with Berliner Cohen for the past eight years, and represents and counsels clients on employment issues and disputes, real estate matters, and contract claims. She advises clients ranging from Santa Clara Valley’s oldest businesses and families to emerging technology, real estate, hospitality, medical and professional, local service and retail businesses. Her employment practice includes handling claims of employment discrimination, wrongful termination, and breach of employment contract cases. Ms. Long counsels on all aspects of employment, including complaints made to the Department of Fair Employment and Housing, Labor Commissioner, and the EEOC on matters relating to employment including compensation issues, mandatory leaves of absence, reasonable accommodations, and reductions-in-force for individuals, companies and local government.
As a member of Berliner Cohen’s Tax Group, Aaron Valenti counsels individuals, corporations, partnerships, and limited liability companies in a variety of transactions, ranging from stock-based compensation to mergers and acquisitions. Mr. Valenti has a particular expertise in providing federal and state income, property and documentary transfer tax advice in connection with real property transactions. Those transactions include purchase and sale transactions, IRC Section 1031 exchanges, and partnership and limited liability company formations, dissolutions, and restructurings. He also has significant experience in representing individuals and businesses before the Internal Revenue Service, Franchise Tax Board, State Board of Equalization and Employment Development Department on a wide range of tax matters.
Berliner Cohen is one of the largest and oldest law firms in San Jose serving the business and regulatory needs of private business and public agencies. For 40 years, the Firm has developed the special expertise required by a diverse client base consisting of nationally recognized business interests and a number of Silicon Valley’s largest national and multinational corporations, new ventures, leading real estate developers and brokerages, cutting-edge technology companies, healthcare and other service providers, banking and financial institutions, municipalities, public agencies and individuals. Berliner Cohen also meets the growing demands of the San Joaquin Valley with its expanding office in Merced.