Results-Focused Attorneys

Joanne Gelfand

Contact

Biography

Education

  • University of Miami School of Law, Coral Gables, Florida
    • J.D. - 1985
    • Honors: cum laude
    • Honors: With Honors
  • New York Law School, New York, New York
    • LL.M. - 2000
    • Major: Labor & Employment Law
  • University of Florida, Gainesville, Florida
    • B.S. - 1982
    • Honors: cum laude
    • Honors: With Honors
    • Major: Journalism/Advertising
    • Minor: Spanish
  • Oxford University
    • Summer Session - Comparative Law - 1983

Bar Admissions

  • Florida, 1985
  • New York, 1995
  • District of Columbia, 1994
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 2nd Circuit
  • U.S. Court of Appeals 11th Circuit
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of Florida
  • U.S. District Court Eastern District of New York
  • U.S. District Court Southern District of New York

Professional Associations

  • Florida Bar Article 12 Task Force, 2022 to Present
  • Florida Bar Bankruptcy Committee
  • Florida Bar Business Law Committee

Honors

  • Legal Services of Greater Miami, Inc., Pro Bono Honoree, 2019
  • Daily Business Review, “Most Effective Bankruptcy Lawyer” in Dade, Broward, and Palm Beach Counties
  • Super Lawyers Magazine, 2006, 2010-2014, 2016-2023
  • South Florida Legal Guide Top Lawyers, Bankruptcy Creditors' Rights
  • Florida Trend’s Legal Elite,Bankruptcy & Workout

Practice Areas

  • Commercial / Business Disputes/ Insolvency

Past Positions

  • Akerman LLP, Of Counsel, Bankruptcy & Insolvency Practice Group, 2001 to 2023

Languages

  • Spanish

Representative Cases

Classes & Seminars

  • Real Property Probate and Trust Law Section of the Florida Bar, Florida Bar, April 2014
  • Cryptocurrency Symposium Panel, St. Thomas Journal of Complex Litigation, Spring 2023
  • Pledging Digital Assets in a Crypto World, Real Property Probate and Trust Law Section of the Florida Bar, June 2023
  • Condominium & Planning Development Law, Speaker, “Bankruptcy for Association Practitioners, Florida Bar, April 2014
  • Real Property Included in a Bankruptcy Estate, Ralph E. Boyer Inst. on Real Property and Condo Law, October 2010

Representative Clients

  • Mortgagees
  • Partnership Debtors
  • Secured and Unsecured Creditors

Published Works

  • Proposed Revisions to Resolve Safe Harbor Conflict as to Master Netting Agreements, American Bankruptcy Institute Journal, Oct., 2022
  • Cryptocurrency Exchange Bankruptcy Litigation, Reuters Practical Law Journal, May, 2024
  • Tiptoeing Over Conflict in Bankruptcy, National Law Journal, January 7, 2002
  • Supreme Court Ruling Increases Costs of Bankruptcies, Daily Business Review, March 29, 2007
  • The How And Why Of Crypto Anonymity And The Court Challenges That May Undo It All In The Face Of Market Upheaval, St. Thomas Journal of Complex Litigation, Vol. 9, Spring 2023
  • The Treatment of Employment Discrimination Claims in Bankruptcy, Priority Status, Stay Relief, Dischargeability and Exemptions, University of Miami Law Review 601, Vol 56, April 2002