by Jeffrey Stanley

“I decided to become a lawyer when my fourth grade teacher, Naomi Watkins, told me she thought I would make a good lawyer,” recalled David Bernstein ’55, who began his BFS years in kindergarten. He left for a year and-a-half because his father was in the military and the family was transferred to Kansas and then Missouri. By second grade he was back, and stayed here through senior year. Bernstein went on to major in economics at Harvard, graduating magna cum laude. Not satisfied with that feat, he did Mrs. Watkins proud by attending Harvard Law School where he again graduated magna cum laude. Today, he’s a corporate lawyer at the New York City based firm of Clifford Chance, where he specializes in mergers and acquisitions.

“During my legal career, most of my work has involved either representing companies when they are acquiring or selling other companies or when they are being acquired,” he explained, “or representing companies and investment banking firms in connection with sales of securities.” He is also often involved in creating joint ventures, “in which two companies agree to pool their assets or otherwise to work together in a particular line of business.” His work led him twice to Iran in the 1970s, prior to the hostage crisis, where he represented the first NYSE-traded company to acquire a hotel and casino in Las Vegas. For nearly a decade he also headed his firm’s corporate department which at the time included over 170 lawyers.

Bernstein grew up in Park Slope near Prospect Park and is quick to point out that it was in an age prior to the enclave’s current bustling, hip scene.

“At the time it was a very nice, quiet neighborhood. It was not the area of trendy restaurants and shops it has become today.”

He left the old neighborhood years ago but still resides in New York City. He and his second wife just celebrated their 25th anniversary. His son and two granddaughters live in Paris. He also has a daughter who works in the city as a geneticist and another daughter in college.

He remembers BFS as a humble but dynamic place.

“We were a tiny school, twenty-five students to a class, but while I was there we had outstanding soccer and basketball teams, undefeated in soccer my senior year and undefeated in basketball my junior year, and BFS students consistently got into the best colleges in the country.” Aside from Mrs. Watkins, he recalls being very much influenced by history teacher Harry Vaughan and math teacher Joseph Derse. “BFS taught how to do things the right way. That is the lesson I try to impart to my clients all the time. Sometimes learning seems tedious while you are going through it. To me, the key to learning is to be curious—about everything.”