JUDITH KORCHIN:
Handling Complex Business Cases
JUDITH KORCHIN ENJOYS GATHERING facts in a complex case, preparing a compelling legal analysis and communicating the key issues to a judge and jury. An experienced litigator and partner at Holland & Knight in Miami, Korchin says, “The law is a perfect career for someone like me who likes practical creativity, ideas and people.”
A civil trial lawyer for more than 30 years, Korchin has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in complex litigation, including defense of class actions. Her clients have included airlines, boat and aircraft manufacturers, contractors, developers, and engineering companies, financial institutions, a national sporting goods retailer, national fast food restaurant chains and a national broadcasting corporation, as well as individuals and charitable organizations.
Korchin focuses her practice on business and construction matters, assisting clients as a litigator and arbitrator. “Many businesses today choose to arbitrate rather than litigate in court when they want to limit what would otherwise be costly discovery,” she says.
As an arbitrator, Korchin has been a panelist in a $155 million dispute between a medical laboratory and an information service company, and chaired a panel in a $65 million dispute between a national hospital chain and a health maintenance organization (HMO) regarding contract interpretations. She also serves as the firm’s National Alternative Dispute Resolution Team Leader.
“Arbitration allows the parties to select panelists they feel are knowledgeable about the issues in dispute,” she says. “In our location, that can involve international companies and parties from the Caribbean, Latin America, Europe and Asia.”
Throughout her career, Korchin has mentored younger lawyers like Leon Patricios, Kelly-Ann Cartwright, Brett Barfield and Yolanda Jacobs, who have gone on to successful careers. She’s been the first woman president of the Dade County Bar Association and serves as president of the American Jewish Committee for Greater Miami and Broward County. Chief United States District Court Judge Federico Moreno appointed Korchin to the Ad Hoc Committee on Attorney Admissions, Peer Review and Attorney Grievance for the
U.S. District Court for the Southern District of Florida. She has been honored by the Florida Association for Women Lawyers during Women’s History Month and by the Women’s Committee of 100 with its Trailblazer Award.
An avid reader, Korchin recently finished “The Hemingses of Monticello,” an examination of President Thomas Jefferson’s relationship with his slave Sally Hemings by Annette Gordon-Reed. “This well written book poignantly illustrates at a personal level the profound and lasting legacy of the inhumanity of slavery.”
Korchin grew up in Miami when the city’s highest buildings were its courthouses. Her father was a flooring subcontractor, whose company worked on the 1950s vintage Mackle houses on Key Biscayne and the Doral hotel on Miami Beach. “When I was in second grade, I started to think about being a lawyer,” says Korchin. “I knew a lawyer was a professional who was respected by others and contributed to the community good.” She earned her undergraduate and law degrees at the University of Florida, where she was Executive Editor of the Law Review, then returned to Miami to be a federal law clerk for C. Clyde Atkins, the late U.S. Chief Judge of the Southern District of Florida.
She and her husband Paul Korchin are the proud parents of Brian Edward Korchin, now a second-year lawyer at a New York firm. “We love to travel and have been to most of Europe, Israel and almost all the U.S. national parks. We’re also big fans of the University of Florida,” adds Korchin, who serves on the UF Foundation Miami-Dade Regional Council. “My personal goals would be to continue to be a strong advocate for my clients, to do meaningful work and to contribute to our profession and community.”
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