Thomas R. McMorrow

Profile

Thomas McMorrow has extensive experience providing counsel on a broad range of federal, state and local government policy; regulatory; and operations issues. He represents private and public sector clients across multiple industries, including governance, healthcare, land use and technology.

Tom is recognized for his ability to facilitate the resolution of intractable policy and regulatory disputes. He was instrumental in getting California’s first-in-the-nation civil Gideon law enacted. The legislation, which was vetoed several times before his involvement, establishes the right to counsel for low-income individuals involved in life-changing civil proceedings.

Similarly, Tom successfully challenged an administrative decision that would have denied California’s Medi-Cal population access to breakthrough medicines, and he has represented multiple Medi-Cal providers to ensure access to necessary medical services.

In the public procurement arena, Tom has defended the award of some of California’s highest-valued state services contracts, and challenged other major state contracting decisions. The state retained Tom as its counsel in defending its decision to terminate one of the largest contracts in the state’s history.

Tom served as outside counsel to the president’s Community Empowerment Board, representing the Clinton administration, the U.S. Department of Health and Human Services and the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, before state and local governments that successfully competed for supplemental tax credits and federal grant allocations to be dedicated to job creation.

In 2009, California Lawyer honored Tom as an Attorney of the Year for his work in enacting civil Gideon. He serves on the Order of Malta Free Clinics’ board of directors and on the University of California Center Sacramento’s advisory board. He is the immediate past chair of the Coro Foundation’s national board of trustees.

Tom is responsible for the firm’s California policy practice and the management of the Sacramento office.

Honors & Awards

Top Lawyers, Sacramento Magazine, 2020

Named a platinum-level Client Champion by Martindale-Hubbell, 2015–2021

Peer-rated for high professional achievement, Martindale-Hubbell, 2015–2021

Attorney of the Year, Legislation, California Lawyer, 2009

California SuperLawyer

Coro Foundation Fellow, New York City, 1985–1986

Leadership Los Angeles Fellow, 1990–1991

Memberships

Admitted to practice in California and the District of Columbia

Director and Officer, Order of Malta Free Clinics, 1996-present

Director and Officer, Research and Policy Institute of California, 2002-present

Director, National Board of Governors of the Coro Foundation, 2003-present

Member, California Chamber of Commerce’s Public Affairs Council, 1996-present

Past Director and Officer, Los Angeles Urban League, 1996-2001

Former Member, President Clinton’s Commission on Meritorious Review, 1999-2000

Past Director, Los Angeles Conservation Corps, 1994-2000

Past President, UCLA Internship Association, 1995-1996; Past Director, 1994-1995

Past President, Leadership Los Angeles Alumni Association, 1991-1992

Publications

Quoted, “California passes nation’s first statewide consumer privacy law,” American Banker, June 29, 2018.

Quoted, “Internet privacy bill passes amid uncertainty,” Daily Journal, June 29, 2018.

Interviewed, “Brisbane Officials to Study Allowing up to 2,200 Homes on Controversial Baylands Site,” San Francisco Business Times, January 17, 2018.

Author, "California’s Coming $20 Billion Healthcare Emergency," Los Angeles Times, December 21, 2016.

05.04.20

Manatt Expands Insurance Offerings With New Practice

Manatt has expanded and formalized its insurance practice, which comprises a multidisciplinary team of professionals with significant ...
07.30.18

US Faces Challenges With Privacy Laws

Manatt’s Thomas McMorrow, a partner in the firm’s government and regulatory practice, was interviewed by Corporate Counsel for...
06.29.18

New CA Measure Protects Consumer Privacy

Manatt’s Tom McMorrow, a partner in the firm’s government and regulatory practice, was quoted by American Banker for an articl...
06.29.18

CA’s Data Privacy Bill Passes

Manatt’s Tom McMorrow, a partner in the firm’s government and regulatory practice, was interviewed by the Daily Journal&nbs...

12.21.16

California's Coming $20 Billion Healthcare Emergency

California is facing a $20 billion healthcare emergency. That’s how much the state stands to lose in annual federal spending if Republicans ...

08.15.12

Regulatory: Public Policy as a Solution, Not Just a Problem

In our recent series of articles we have discussed the impact that government policy is having on client's operations, opportunities and, ...

08.01.12

Regulatory: Do You Need a Consultant or a Lobbyist?

As the interactions between business and government become more complex and fall under a wider and wider net, the need to hire government affairs ...

07.05.12

Regulatory: What Clients Still Need to Know About the Affordable Care ...

The U.S. Supreme Court’s decision on the Affordable Care Act (ACA or Act) resolves the uncertainty about the constitutionality of the Act. ...

10.14.24

California Legislature Amends, Slightly Improves Levine Act’s ...

California Legislature recently passed and Governor Newsom signed two bills amending the Levine Act.
05.13.24

Governor Proposes to Overcome $45 billion Budget Deficit

California Governor Gavin Newsom released the “May Revision” to the state budget on Friday . The May Revision, or “May ...
06.06.23

California Assembly Acts to Streamline Physician Credentialing Process

The California Legislature is considering a bill to rationalize the process by which health insurers credential providers.
05.19.23

Newsom's Updated Budget Proposal Safeguards Health Care Funds Amid ...

California Governor Gavin Newsom has released his “May Revision” budget, which updates his initial FY2023-24 budget proposal released in ...

02.14.19

From Enforcement to Regulation: Legislative Trends for the Tech ...

New laws in Europe and California are forcing tech companies to reassess their content or risk big fines. Now, the industry anticipates that more ...

10.17.18

A National Privacy and Data Security Game Changer

The California state legislature wrapped up the 2017–2018 legislative session with a consensus privacy measure that sought to clean up the ...

08.14.18

Dissecting California’s Privacy Legislation and What It Means for You

On June 28, 2018, Governor Brown signed into law the California Consumer Privacy Act (CCPA), the nation’s strictest consumer privacy and data ...

01.17.13

Manatt Hosts Post-Election Client Program, “2013 – What A Year It ...

Manatt will host an invitation-only client program, "2013 - What A Year It Will Be" on Thursday January 17 in Manatt's San Francisco ...

Thomas R. McMorrow

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