Charlie Ditkoff's Schools

• Yale Law School , Class of 1986 JD

• Brown University , Class of 1983 AB - Political Science

Charlie Ditkoff's Publications

• Hard Knocks and the New York Jets, Charles Ditkoff December, 2010 By: Charles Ditkoff In 2001, HBO launched the television series Hard Knocks, a reality show designed to give viewers an in-depth look at the training camps of teams in the National Football League. The show focuses on one team per season and usually concentrates on position battles, family matters, and preparation for the upcoming season. Hard Knocks also showcases some of the team’s inside jokes and pranks, such as those of the colorful Chad Ochocinco during the 2009 installment with the Cincinnati Bengals. Rookie players and other journeymen receive a large share of airtime, usually devoted to their adjustment to the rigors of life in the NFL. In 2010, HBO decided to film Hard Knocks at the training camp of the New York Jets. Still smarting from their loss to the Colts in the AFC championship game at the end of the 2009 season, the Jets were hungry to reach the Super Bowl in 2010. Much of the series was devoted to the vocal coaching style of head coach Rex Ryan, who drew flak from commentator and former NFL coach Tony Dungy for his profanity-laced tirades. Darrelle Revis, widely considered one of the best NFL cornerbacks since Deion Sanders, became involved in a lengthy contract holdout that excluded him from the majority of training camp. Hard Knocks garnered regular statements from Rex Ryan and general manager Mike Tannenbaum, but Revis and his agent placed a moratorium on press access to the negotiations. The show focused on the development of young quarterback Mark Sanchez, drafted as the fifth overall selection in the 2009 draft. After leading the Jets to a conference championship berth in his rookie season, Sanchez looked to improve upon that success and become the face of the New York Jets franchise. At the fullback position, John Conner, Jason Davis, and Tony Richardson competed throughout training camp for the starting job, which eventually went to the veteran Richardson.

• Charles Ditkoff: Tennis Quick Facts, Charles Ditkoff January, 2011 By: Charles Ditkoff As someone who plays tennis in my spare time, I enjoy learning more about the sport, as well. Many people know the basics of the game yet would experience difficulty answering trivia questions about tennis. Here, I present some quick facts. 1. Andy Roddick hit the fastest serve ever in the 2004 Davis Cup. The serve measured 155 miles per hour. Not to be outdone, Brenda Schultz-McCarthy provided the fastest serve hit by a woman, a 130 miles per hour shot she made in 2007. 2. Billie Jean King holds more Wimbledon titles than any player in history, with 20 championship wins between 1961 and 1979. 3. The earliest examples of a tennis-like game date back to 16th century France, when aristocrats and royalty played jeu de paume (the game of the palm), an indoor game similar to handball. 4. A more recognizable form of tennis appeared in 19th century England. Lawn tennis featured racquets and grass courts similar to today’s play surfaces. 5. The year 1877 saw the first Wimbledon Championship in history, an amateur men’s tournament with 22 competitors. 6. Jimmy Connors holds the distinction of winning the most men’s singles titles in professional tennis. 7. Three women and two men have won the Grand Slam: Don Budge, Maureen Connolly, Rod Laver, Margaret Smith-Court, and Steffi Graff. The last Grand Slam occurred in 1988. 8. Last year, (2010) the longest tennis match ever was recorded. Nicholas Mahut and John Isner spent more than 11 hours on the court at Wimbledon before Isner emerged victorious with a score of 70 to 68.

• Charles Ditkoff on Alexander Hamilton and Aaron Burr: The Duel, Charles Ditkoff March, 2011 by Charles Ditkoff During the 1804 New York governor race, Morgan Lewis defeated his opponent, Vice President Aaron Burr, largely due to Alexander Hamilton’s assistance. A publisher quoted Hamilton regarding his disdain for Burr, who felt that Hamilton was questioning his integrity. Burr subsequently demanded a public apology, but Hamilton refused, claiming ignorance of the comment. The two entered into a lengthy personal battle and scheduled a duel to end the matter for good on July 11, 1803, despite heavy protests from each man’s individual supporters. The duel took place beside the Hudson River on a precarious ledge in Weehawken, New Jersey. At dawn, the two men met to duel with pistols. Hamilton’s shot missed Burr, breaking a tree branch above his head, but Burr managed to wound Hamilton. In a letter that Hamilton authored the night before the duel, he vaguely alludes to an intention to miss Burr on purpose. Scholars continue to argue about Hamilton’s words and the actual circumstances of the duel. Adding to the confusion, neither of the men present at the duel could identify who had fired the first shot. They also failed to determine the angle at which Hamilton shot, making the event even more ambiguous. Burr’s bullet hit Hamilton above his right hip, shattering his false rib, which splintered and lacerated his liver and diaphragm. The bullet continued to his lumbar vertebrae, where it became lodged. In the early 19th century, duelists often decided not to fire at their opponent, following a strict procedure during the duel to indicate their intentions. Despite his written plans, Hamilton purportedly did not adhere to the duelist code. If he had, Burr would likely not have fatally wounded him. Modern scholars believe that, given the clues, Burr fired after Hamilton, but we have no conclusive evidence. When approached with the fact that Hamilton may have misled him, Burr expressed only anger and indignation. Paralyzed, Hamilton took a ferry back to New York and met with his family and friends. He passed away the following afternoon after hours of intense pain and suffering. Given his interest in history, Charlie Ditkoff finds the events leading up to Hamilton’s death fascinating.

• The Kentucky Derby by Charlie Ditkoff, Charlie Ditkoff March, 2011 by Charlie Ditkoff I am a longtime enthusiast of bluegrass music, which traces its roots to the Appalachian Mountains of Kentucky and other states. I am also a fan of another Kentucky tradition, the Kentucky Derby. Nicknamed “the most exciting two minutes in sports,” the Kentucky Derby has stood as a premier event for three-year-old Thoroughbred horses since 1875. In 1896, the course length was shortened from 1.5 miles to its current length of 1.25 miles. The race’s popularity has increased substantially over the years: from an original event attendance of 10,000, the annual race now attracts some 150,000 spectators. Visited by both local residents and out-of-state tourists, the Kentucky Derby often boasts high-profile attendees such as U.S. presidents and members of the British royal family. The Kentucky Derby emerged as one of the Triple Crown events in the early 20th century, as horse owners sent their Thoroughbreds to compete in the Preakness Stakes and Belmont Stakes just a few weeks after the Louisville event. The first horse to win all three events in a season was Sir Barton in 1919, although it would be 11 years before sportswriter Charles Hatton christened the events the Triple Crown. The highlight of Kentucky Derby history undoubtedly occurred in 1973, when Secretariat broke all previous time records. His time of 1 minute and 59 2/5 seconds has stood as the mark to beat for nearly four decades. The Kentucky Derby remains an event steeped with tradition. Mint Julep made with bourbon stands as the official drink of the event, and the thick and meaty stew burgoo its traditional dish. Each year features a Derby hat parade, where men and women display the elegant and stylish headwear traditional among spectators. The Kentucky Derby remains not a stand-alone event, but the culmination of the Kentucky Derby Festival, a series of Louisville parties and events lasting two weeks. Churchill Downs will host the 137th Kentucky Derby on May 7th, 2011, which should provide intense drama for spectators and participants alike.

• The Quality of the Yale Law School by Charles Ditkoff, Charlie Ditkoff's Blog on Bigsight April, 2011 Charlie Ditkoff presently serves as Vice Chairman of Corporate and Investment Banking for Bank of America Merrill Lynch. Prior to joining the international New York-based enterprise in 1999, he garnered key professional experience across the financial and healthcare sectors. Charlie Ditkoff holds an AB in Political Science through Brown University, graduating magna cum laude from the distinguished Rhode Island school. While enrolled, Charles Ditkoff also joined the prestigious Phi Beta Kappa honor society. Following the receipt of his undergraduate degree, Charlie Ditkoff entered a Juris Doctorate program through Yale Law School, completing his formal education in 1986. Charles Ditkoff and his wife currently reside in Scarsdale, New York. Yale Law School continues to rank as one of the leading law universities in the world. Constituent of the greater New Haven, Connecticut-based Ivy League institution, Yale Law School presently sustains over 180 annual courses across a diversity of exceptional degree programs. In addition to the JD, JSD, MSL, and LLM, Yale Law School offers joint degree options that include the JD-MA, JD-MBA, and JD-PhD. Commanding a JD acceptance rate of only 6.7%, Yale Law School currently boasts over 70 full-time faculty members instructing approximately 670 degree candidates. The renowned international institution maintains students hailing from 31 countries and 48 US states, around 80% of which receive need-based financial aid. In addition to acting as a premier educational institution, Yale Law School also remains an incredibly generous program. In fact, Yale Law School presently sustains one of the most charitable post-graduate loan forgiveness programs operating in the US today. Last year alone, Yale Law School contributed over $2.8 million toward graduate loan payments. Yale Law School maintains its uncompromising commitment to providing a world-class education in part through a unique dedication to providing smaller class sizes. Deliberately cultivating an environment in which students receive exceptional faculty time has not been easy for Yale, however, as other similar educational institutions have opted for large enrollments as well the natural consequence of more impersonal faculty-student relations that results from this decision. Instead, Yale Law School has vigorously resisted this trend, and the school remains small by design today. Yale Law School also promotes an innovative interdisciplinary approach to legal education and supports a highly collaborative environment. Additionally, Yale Law School’s hands-on strategy towards instruction offers even first year students the opportunity to engage directly with real legal clients and cases. For more information regarding Yale Law School please visit law.yale.edu.

• History and Achievements of Novelist Philip Milton Roth, Charlie Ditkoff April, 2011 by Charles (Charlie) Ditkoff An avid reader, Charlie Ditkoff has finished several of writer Philip Roth’s works. Here, Charles Ditkoff provides some background on one of his preferred authors. During a career that spans more than five decades, American author Philip Roth has produced numerous groundbreaking works, including one of his first books, Goodbye, Columbus, a novella featuring five short stories that examine the challenges faced by second- and third-generation American Jews. A two-time winner of both the National Book Award and the National Book Critics Circle award, Roth also received a Pulitzer Prize for his novel American Pastoral (1997). Common themes found throughout many of the author’s books include sexual situations and an investigation of Jewish American identities. Growing up in Newark, New Jersey, Roth earned his undergraduate degree from Bucknell University and his graduate diploma from the University of Chicago. He taught creative fiction at the University of Iowa and Princeton University, and comparative literature at the University of Pennsylvania, before retiring from teaching in 1991. Roth’s recognition exploded in 1969 with the publishing of Portnoy’s Complaint, his third novel. Popularized for candid descriptions of masturbation and representation of sexual desires, Portnoy’s Complaint brought celebrity to Roth and earned much attention in literary circles, including receiving a place on TIME magazine’s list of the 100 best English-language novels from 1923 to 2005. During the mid-1970s, Roth developed his fictional character Nathan Zuckerman, who narrates or appears in several of the author’s books, including My Life As a Man (1974), The Ghost Writer (1979), and Zuckerman Unbound (1981). By the 1990s and the 21st century, Roth had amassed a large collection of literary accolades, including three PEN/Faulkner Awards for Fiction for his books Operation Shylock: A Confession, The Human Stain, and Everyman. In 1997, he completed American Pastoral, which follows a young Jewish-American through the turbulence of the 1960s and 1970s. In addition to winning the Pulitzer Prize for Fiction in 1998, American Pastoral ranked as one of TIME magazine’s ALL-TIME 100 Greatest Novels (from 1923 to 2005).

• Helping Businesses Maintain Equitable Employee Benefit Plans During Mergers and Acquisitions April, 2012 The Vice Chairman of Global Healthcare Coverage at Bank of America Merrill Lynch (BAML) since 2006, Charlie Ditkoff leverages his professional background in corporate securities law and finance to assist BAML clients in the development and implementation of streamlined, profit-oriented operational strategies. Mr. Ditkoff previously served as the institution’s Vice Chairman of Corporate and Investment Banking before transitioning into his current role as Vice Chairman of Global Healthcare Coverage in 2006. Possessing a great deal of expertise managing mergers and acquisitions (M&A) for a highly varied client base, Charlie Ditkoff and Bank of America Merrill Lynch offer tailored retirement and benefit plan services designed with best practice firmly in mind, providing peace of mind a security to companies currently undergoing or preparing for a merger or acquisition. Prior to the finalization of any business transaction, both parties involved must undertake a thorough assessment of how the deal will affect staff healthcare benefit policies. As the cost of medical treatment continues to rise, individuals who depend on employer-provided health insurance stand in a precarious position. Placing an employee’s medical benefits package at risk can prove extremely costly not only for a worker, but for the company as whole. To avoid any costly missteps regarding the transition of employee healthcare insurance after a merger or acquisition, enterprises of all sizes should strongly consider utilizing a defined contribution (DC) plan to uncover issues with matching contributions, investment menus, grandfathered plan provisions, vesting provisions, and more. A careful review of these areas will allow an organization to pinpoint features appropriate for collective bargaining, ideally retaining enough flexibility to keep staff morale at an optimal level. Salaried 401(k) plans also hold appeal to companies that need to do away with duplicate or overly expensive plans and subsequently adjust investment menus accordingly. For further information about how Bank of America Merrill Lynch can guide your company through a merger or acquisition, go to http://corp.bankofamerica.com/business/smb/healthcare.

Charlie Ditkoff's Links