Mark L. Horwitz
Law Offices of Mark L. Horwitz P.A.
Title: President
Company info: Founded in 1981 in Orlando, the firm specializes in white-collar crime, including tax matters, Medicare/ Medicaid, securities investigations and other business-related crimes. The firm also represents businesses and individuals involved in complex civil litigation.
Background: Horwitz was born in West Palm Beach. His maternal grandfather, Carl Altman, moved to Lake Worth in the early 1930s and helped establish the first Jewish Temple in Palm Beach County.
Education: Bachelor's degree in business administration with a major in economics, University of Florida; law degree from the University of Florida College of Law
Residence: Sweetwater Club in Longwood
What was your first job? My first job as an attorney was working for the Deltona Corp. as assistant corporate counsel. While I enjoyed corporate work, I found that it did not present the challenge that I was hoping for in the legal profession and did not provide me with an opportunity to engage in trial work.
How did you get into the business you're in? After approximately 10 months with the Deltona Corp., I entered active duty for training in the U.S. Army Reserve. I received a commission in 1969 and delayed active duty commitment so that I could obtain a law degree.
After finishing my active duty for training, I interviewed with the U.S. Attorney for the Middle District of Florida and was fortunate enough to obtain a job as an assistant U.S. attorney, filling a vacancy that existed in the Orlando office at that time.
How did you come to specialize in white-collar defense? My specialization in white-collar defense stems from my work as an assistant U.S.attorney from 1973 to 1980. I prosecuted white-collar cases for the government, developing an expertise in handling these complex investigations and prosecutions of tax and business related crimes.
Are you surprised by the seeming explosion of recent white-collar cases such as Enron and Martha Stewart? There has not really been a recent explosion of white-collar cases. Rather, the Enron and Martha Stewart cases are just the latest in the continuing line of high-profile, white-collar cases.
Before Enron and Martha Stewart, there was Leona Helmsley, Immelda Marcos and a score of other prosecutions against the famous and not-so-famous in the business world. For example, the savings and loan crash, which resulted in the federal government establishing the RTC, saw a large number of white-collar prosecutions in which executives of savings and loans across the country were prosecuted. Many of those cases were high-profile cases at the time.
How does the defense of white-collar defendants differ from that of other defendants? White-collar crime is often more complex to defend than other types of criminal conduct. In addition, because business conduct or taxation issues are complex, it is imperative to develop the realities of business situations to show that conduct of the citizen was not criminal, and that the law enforcement investigation is incorrect or incomplete due to the complex nature of business or taxation issues.
What's your formula for success? My formula for success is to leave no stone unturned and to do everything possible within the legal system to preserve my client's liberty.
Who is your role model, and why? I have two role models. One, my father, through the memory of his exploits as related to me by my grandfather and aunt, and Max Stoyer, perhaps the greatest trial lawyer in America, who practiced law at the turn of the century.
