Prominent Litigators Dean Zipser And Thomas Umberg Join Manatt’s Growing Orange County Office
COSTA MESA and LOS ANGELES, CA – April 25, 2008 – Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, the national law and consulting firm, announced today that Dean Zipser and Thomas J. Umberg will join the firm's Litigation Division as partners in Orange County. Both Mr. Zipser and Mr. Umberg come from the Orange County office of Morrison & Foerster, where Mr. Zipser was the Managing Partner and the head of the Litigation Department. Mr. Umberg previously served as Managing Partner of that office.
"Dean and Tom are well-known litigators and community leaders, both with impressive histories of public service," said Ellen R. Marshall, Administrative Partner of Manatt's Orange County office and co-chair of the firm's Banking and Specialty Finance Practice Group. "Dean, Tom and I worked closely together before I joined Manatt five years ago, so I know just how talented and committed they are."
The addition of these high-profile partners in Orange County will, according to William T. Quicksilver, Manatt's Chief Executive and Managing Partner, "provide additional strength to our outstanding national litigation team. This exciting development underscores our commitment to growth in the dynamic Orange County market and reflects our approach to growth in all of our core markets."
Mr. Zipser's civil business litigation practice encompasses complex actions in intellectual property, contracts, business torts, real estate, construction, consumer class actions, and lender liability. He also counsels clients in connection with efforts to avoid or minimize the risks of litigation, and has extensive experience in alternative dispute resolution procedures.
Mr. Zipser is a leader in the Orange County legal community, having served in 2005 as President of the Orange County Bar Association, and for many years as an officer and director of that organization. In 2004, Mr. Zipser was the President of the Orange County Chapter of the Association of Business Trial Lawyers and he previously served in the Chapter's other officer positions and on its Board of Governors. In addition, he was selected and has served as a lawyer representative to the Ninth Circuit Judicial Conference. Mr. Zipser is a member of the Board of the Constitutional Rights Foundation of Orange County, and was the recipient in 2003 of the Jurisprudence Award given by the Anti-Defamation League.
Mr. Zipser holds a B.A., summa cum laude, from the University of California, Los Angeles and a J.D. from the Stanford University Law School, where he was a member of the Stanford Law Review.
Mr. Umberg focuses on litigation and federal and state policy and regulatory matters, as well as domestic and international project development. From 1997 through 1999, Mr. Umberg served as Deputy Director at the White House Office of National Drug Control Policy. Prior to joining Morrison & Foerster, Mr. Umberg served was an Assistant U.S. Attorney in Los Angeles and Orange County. As a federal criminal prosecutor, he tried numerous white-collar and civil rights cases.
Mr. Umberg has served three terms in the California legislature where, as a member of the California Assembly, he chaired the Committee on Environmental Safety and the Committee on Elections and Redistricting. Mr. Umberg presently serves as a Colonel in the U.S. Army Reserve. In 2004, Mr. Umberg was called to active duty to prosecute war crimes violations by detainees housed at Guantanamo Bay, Cuba.
Mr. Umberg holds a B.A. from the University of California, Los Angeles, an M.A. from the U.S. Army War College, and a J.D. from the University of California, Hastings College of the Law.
About Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP
Manatt, Phelps & Phillips, LLP, provides legal and consulting services to a global client base from offices in Los Angeles, Orange County, Palo Alto, San Francisco, and Sacramento, California; New York City and Albany, New York; and Washington, D.C. Manatt includes Manatt Health Solutions, a healthcare policy and strategic business advisory group, and ManattJones Global Strategies, LLC, a wholly owned subsidiary that develops and implements strategies to expand client businesses and facilitate their effective competition in global markets. For more information, visit www.manatt.com, www.manatthealthsolutions.com, and www.manattjones.com.