Jan Berlage’s practice focuses on general business litigation, ranging from commercial disputes to bankruptcy () to intellectual property (). Jan has extensive experience in trials, arbitrations, mediations, and administrative hearings, including arguments before the Maryland Court of Appeals and the United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit. He has secured major jury verdicts and large settlements for both businesses and individuals, including most recently a $1.6 million and a $900, compensatory damage awards for copyright clients and a nearly $1 million settlement for a surviving heir in a wrongful death lawsuit. He has also successfully defended against multimillion dollar claims in both state and federal court.

Prior to private practice, Jan served as law clerk to the Honorable E. Stephen Derby, U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland. He has taught pretrial litigation practice at the University of Maryland School of law, served on the Board of Governors for the Maryland State Bar Association and the United States Commission on Civil Rights, Maryland State Action Committee, and is a co-author of the book, Maryland Equine Law: A Legal Guide to Horse Ownership and Activities (). He is a fellow of both the American and the Maryland State Bar Foundations, presents regularly at CLE courses, and has chaired numerous committees at both the national and state level. Based on his experience and client reviews, Lawyergist ranks Jan as “Superb” with a perfect 10 rating, and is a business litigation Super Lawyer.  

Mr. Berlage along with his partners were the 2013, 2014 and 2015 Editor’s Choice recipients of Corporate INTL’s Commercial Dispute Resolution Law Firm of the Year Award in Maryland, and its IP Law Firm of the Year and Bankruptcy Law Firm of the Year for 2014 and 2015. 

Some of Jan’s representative matters are

• Secured a $1.6 million compensatory federal jury verdict for a copyright client before the United States District Court for the District of Delaware
• Secured a $900K compensatory federal jury verdict (plus $300K statutory award) for a copyright client before the United States District Court for the District of Maryland
• Obtained a defendant's verdict against a claim for $6 million dollars as well as a successfuly jury verdict on a counterclaim for a day care client before the Circuit Court for Montgomery County (Maryland)
• Obtained a nearly $1 million settlement for a surviving heir in a wrongful death lawsuit
• Successfully represented both the inventors of the AK-47 and M-16 in intellectual property cases
• Obtained a plaintiff’s verdict for family in week long civil rights jury trial before the United States District Court for the District of Connecticut
• Represented inventor in week long trade secret trial before the Delaware Court of Chancery
• One of four attorneys involved in Comcast’s purchase of assets in Adelphia Communications bankruptcy case
• Achieved summary judgment award for defendant in billion dollar insurance coverage lawsuit
• Represented creditors’ committee in multimillion dollar bankruptcy before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio
• Successfully represented electrical cooperative in multimillion dollar litigation before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of Texas
• Represented a debtor horse racing track before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the District of Maryland
• Handled multimillion dollar bankruptcy sale of medical device company to a French based multi-national corporation
• Represented indenture trustee in bankruptcy matter involving $100 million+ bond issuances
• Successfully litigated on behalf of indenture trustee matter involving a waste-to-energy facility in Florida before the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of New York
• Obtained numerous bankruptcy discharges for individuals
• Successfully represented numerous defendants in copyright infringement cases
• Obtained $1 million+ judgment for major corporation in corporate theft case
• Achieved numerous trademarks and copyright for businesses and individuals in a wide array of industries

Some of Jan’s representative speaking engagements are:

• POLICE LIABILITY CLAIMS FROM START TO FINISH, Ethical Considerations in Police Liability Cases, NBI 2016
• PATH INTERNATIONAL REGION 2 CONFERENCE, Best Practices for Equine Law Related Activities, PATH 2016
• MARYLAND STATE BAR ASSOCIATION ANNUAL MEETING, Keeping the Farm: Issues Related to Divorce, Bankruptcy and Other Issues, MSBA 2016
• HEARSAY, EMAIL, BUSINESS RECORDS & SOCIAL MEDIA -- IN THE TRENCHES, Top Hearsay Pitfalls Made by Trial Attorneys, NBI 2016
• FORENSIC VALUATION MOCK TRIAL, Forensic Valuation Mock Trial, MACPA 2016
• DIRTY LITIGATION TACTICS: HOW TO DEAL WITH THE "RAMBO" LITIGATOR, Dirty Litigation Tactics, NBI 2016
• BANKRUPTCY BAR ASSOCIATION SPRING BREAK, Individual Chapter 11 Plan Confirmations, MBA 2015
• THIRD MARYLAND HORSE FORUM, Maryland Equine Law and Access to Public Lands and Riding, MHIB 2014
• S.I.G.M.A., Exchange, Finance, Credit and Collection Share Group Meeting, What Every Business Should Know About Bankruptcy, SIGMA 2014
• MARYLAND FORECLOSURES AND WORKOUTS: Workouts – The Various Tools in the Tool for Working Out Troubled Real Estate Loans, NBI 2014
• REAL ESTATE FORECLOSURE: A STEP-BY-STEP WORKSHOP – How Bankruptcy Changes the Landscape, NBI 2013
• CHAPTER 7 AND 13 BANKRUPTCY: LINE-BY-LINE Workshop – Consumer Bankruptcy Fundamentals, NBI 2013
• CHAPTER 7 BANKRUPTCY, Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service 2013
• NUTS AND BOLTS OF COLLECTION LAW – How to Find Debtors and Their Assets, NBI 2012
• ADVANCED COLLECTION STRATEGIES – Pre-Suit Collection Strategies, NBI 2012
• BANKRUPTCY SEMINAR, Maryland Volunteer Lawyers Service 2012
• CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY: THE BASICS OF CHAPTER 7 AND 13, NBI 2011
• BUSINESS CONTRACTS A TO Z – Preparing Contracts with an Eye Towards Litigation, NBI 2011
• BANKRUPTCY LITIGATION, NBI 2011
• CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY, NBI 2010
• COLLECTION LAW FROM START TO FINISH, NBI 2010
• CONSUMER BANKRUPTCY IN MARYLAND, NBI 2010
• CHAPTER 7, NBI 2009
• ADVANCE COLLECTION STRATEGIES, NBI 2009
• CONTRACT PRACTICE FOR MARYLAND PARALEGALS, Halfmoon Seminars 2007
• UNDERSTANDING FEDERAL COURTS AND PROCEDURE, Halfmoon Seminars 2006
• MULTI-JURISDICTIONAL PRACTICE: WHAT EVERY ATTORNEY NEEDS TO KNOW, American Bar Association 2006