State senator and litigator recognized for commitment to justice, public service

Sen. Tom Umberg, D-Santa Ana, will receive one of the highest honors in the Los Angeles legal community Friday when the Los Angeles County Bar Association presents him with the Shattuck-Price Outstanding Lawyer Award--recognizing not just his years of public service, but his enduring presence in the courtroom as a practicing attorney and advocate for justice.

Umberg said in an interview Monday that the award carries special significance for him.

"It's the lawyer award, as opposed to a legislator award," Umberg said, speaking to the Daily Journal in his Senate office in Sacramento. "If you look at the list of previous winners, it's got some amazing people on it. I'm really humbled by that."

The association established the award in 1968 to honor Edward S. Shattuck and Ira M. Price II, two past presidents who died during their terms. It is given annually "to an individual who has made an extraordinary contribution to improving the administration of justice," according to the association's website.

Several past winners are among Umberg's legal heroes. He pointed to 1984 winner Shirley M. Hufstedler--the late Morrison & Foerster LLP partner who also served as U.S. Secretary of Education under President Jimmy Carter and sat on the 9th U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals--as someone who inspired him early in his career.

Umberg obtained his law degree while in the U.S. Army. He joined Morrison & Foerster in 1995 and worked with Laurie D. Zelon, who later became a justice on California's 2nd District Court of Appeal; Zelon won the award in 2009. He also pointed to former California Attorney General John Van de Kamp, who was a political mentor to Umberg and won the award in 2005.

Umberg added that the award recognizes his work as a lawmaker, but one who has kept an active hand in the legal profession. In fact, Umberg said, his legislative priorities are sometimes directly influenced by what he witnesses in court.

"It's good for me to see the practical realities of what's happening," Umberg said. "With some issues like remote access and the court reporters challenge, all those things people can tell you about it."

But because he still appears in court, he has directly experienced a judge telling him, "You better go find a court reporter, good luck." Umberg said he had a trial in Sonoma County where a law allowing the use of remote court reporters expired "midtrial."

The other partners at Umberg Zipser LLP in Irvine tease him about how much he practices law, Umberg admitted, but he said he still appears with some regularity. He recently did an arbitration and has a trial coming up in October. A couple of years ago he had a trial that lasted three months. In 2022 he helped win a $47 million verdict in Sonoma County Superior Court on behalf of a client who claimed intentional interference with contractual relations and breach of fiduciary duty--though he added, "Sadly, it was reversed by the Court of Appeal."

As chair of the Senate Judiciary Committee since 2020, Umberg has also taken a vital role in the Legislature's relationship with the California State Bar. Two or three years ago, this meant pushing back on the bar's efforts to explore licensing paraprofessionals and looking into other regulatory changes. Umberg repeatedly reminded bar officials the Legislature controls the agency's purse strings.

This year he is carrying the bar's fee bill once again, and a measure calling for an audit of the botched February exam.

"I'm very concerned about the bar taking on other responsibilities before they can adequately enforce discipline and administer the bar exam," Umberg said. "Those are their core responsibilities."

Umberg is in his second stint in the Legislature; he served in the Assembly in the 1990s and early 2000s. He will term out by the end of next year.

But he said he plans to actively pursue legislation on behalf of the legal profession during the time he has left in office, and to stay involved after he leaves. Meanwhile, his family legacy in the law will continue.

"I have two kids that are relatively recent vintage lawyers," he said proudly.