Berman, Howard L. (Howard Lawrence), 1941-

Dates:

Birth 1941-04-15

Birth 1941

Gender:

Male

Nationality: Americans,

Language: English

Biographical notes:

Howard Lawrence Berman (born April 15, 1941) is an American attorney and politician. A member of the Democratic Party, he notably served in the U.S. House of Representatives from California's 26th (1983-2003) and 28th (2003-2013) congressional districts.

Born in Los Angeles, California, he attended school there, graduating from Alexander Hamilton High School before earning B.A. and LL.B. degrees from the University of California, Los Angeles. After serving as a VISTA volunteer in Baltimore and San Francisco from 1966 to 1967, he worked as an associate at the Los Angeles law firm, Levy, Van Bourg & Hackler from 1967 to 1972 specializing in labor relations. Berman won election to the Assembly in 1972 from a district in the Hollywood Hills, unseating the incumbent Republican speaker pro-tempore. After supporting Assembly Speaker Leo McCarthy against the insurgent bid for the Speakership by Assemblyman Willie Brown, Berman was appointed Majority Leader of the California Assembly, serving in the role from 1974 to 1980. McCarthy fired Berman when he tried to replace him in 1980. Although McCarthy failed to retain the speakership, Berman also failed to win it, with Willie Brown became speaker.

After redistricting made the 26th congressional district significantly more Democratic, Berman won the Democratic primary for the seat and the general election with 60 percent of the vote. Berman was re-elected fourteen times, never dropping below 61 percent of the vote, from 1984 through 2010. Berman was the House sponsor of the 1986 False Claims Act that authorized civil litigation by whistleblowers. He championed protecting American film industry jobs from outsourcing. He has also voted against amending the constitution to require a balanced budget, against banning the desecration of the American flag, against the Defense of Marriage Act, and against restrictions on abortion. Berman is known for his protection of copyright interests, and his alliances with the entertainment industry; he was sometimes referred to as the "representative from Hollywood". He proposed legislation under which copyright holders would be able to employ technological tools such as file blocking, redirection, spoofs, and decoys—among others—to curb piracy.

Following redistricting after the 2010 Census, Berman decided to run in the newly redrawn California's 30th congressional district, facing fellow Democrat Brad Sherman, running as the more conservative Democrat, hoping to divide the Democratic vote and dominate in the independent and conservative vote. However, in the November general election, Sherman defeated Berman, 60.3%–39.7%. In April 2013, Berman announced he would be joining the Washington, D. C., law firm Covington & Burling as a senior advisor in March 2013. Berman also serves on the Board of Directors of the National Democratic Institute. He serves on the board of The Washington Institute for Near East Policy and is an advisory board member of the Counter Extremism Project.