Thomas A. Vogele

Mr. Vogele is a founding partner of GVA. He attended law school at the age of 51 after a successful 25 year business career.

He attended Northwestern University and the Kellogg Graduate School of Management, before moving to California in 1980. Mr. Vogele started a manufacturing business in 1980 and sold it to a subsidiary of Berkshire Hathaway in 1987. He served as President of the Berkshire subsidiary until 1992, after which he owned and operated three other successful manufacturing businesses before entering law school in 2004.

He began his legal career as a litigation and appellate associate with the Enterprise Counsel Group, ALC. At ECG, he successfully represented clients in a variety of litigation and appellate matters, including all aspects of pre-trial practice as well as serving as first- and second-chair on civil trials and alternative dispute resolution. Because of his business background and expertise, ECG selected Mr. Vogele to work on several business cases, including:

  • Ownership dispute regarding a large California commercial printer
  • Defense of wrongful termination claim against an Orange County-based apparel company
  • Prosecution of breach of contract/foreclosure action against funeral home/mortuary business
  • Prosecution of undue influence/breach of contract claims to decedent’s insurance proceeds
  • Prosecution of trademark infringement/counterfeit goods action against supplier and distributor
  • UCC-based defense of breach of contract claims by supplier
  • Prosecution of breach of contract claims by Taiwan-based publicly traded commercial printer
  • Defense of publicly traded hospital against physicians group over Medicare payments
  • Enforcement of settlement agreement, defense of wrongful termination and workers’ compensation claim against publicly traded hospital by former contract attorney

Mr. Vogele graduated from Chapman University School of Law with numerous honors and awards, including the Dean’s Award for professionalism to the legal community, voted on by the faculty and school administration; the Top Oralist Award from his classmates; and was selected to give the commencement speech. Mr. Vogele was a member of both the Moot Court Honors and Executive Board, and the Mock Trial Board while at Chapman.

He served as judicial extern to the Hon. Vincent P. Zurzolo, former Chief Judge of the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Central District of California from 2005 to 2006. While working in chambers, Mr. Vogele helped draft the 2006 revisions to the Court’s official form disclosure statement and plan of reorganization. Mr. Vogele drafted significant portions of a Bankruptcy Appellate Panel brief and published decision by Judge Zurzolo during this time.

Mr. Vogele is admitted to practice before all courts in the State of California, the United States District Courts for the Central, Southern and Eastern Districts of California, and the United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit Court. He was admitted pro hac vice to the U.S. Bankruptcy Court for the Delaware District in 2009. He is also a member of the Orange County Bar Association, the Los Angeles County Bar Association, the International Trademark Association and the American Bankruptcy Institute.