homas Burke, the head of Brobeck, Phleger & Harrison's labor and employment group, died Tuesday at the firm's Los Angeles office. He was 63.
His death, which is believed to have been the result of a heart attack, came as a shock to the firm, and his partners reacted emotionally to his passing.
"It's been a real blow," said partner Jamie Johnson, who's worked alongside Burke for some 15 years. "You always knew where you stood with Tom. There was nothing phony or pretentious about him and that's an admirable quality in a lawyer."
A San Bernardino native, Burke joined Brobeck in Los Angeles in 1994 after 18 years with the now-defunct Pettit & Martin, where he first worked with Johnson.
Within two years of arriving at Brobeck, Burke was made managing partner of the firm's Los Angeles office. After four years of running the office, Burke moved over in 2000 to manage the firm's 55-lawyer labor and employment group.
A litigator, Burke represented clients in a wide range of industries, including airlines, cable television companies, steel manufacturers and hospitals. With his direct and honest approach, Burke developed a fiercely loyal following among his clients even when Burke disagreed with them, Johnson said.
"I've seen situations where Tom has told [clients] that if they wanted to take an approach, they could try the case themselves," Johnson said. His clients almost always relented, Johnson said, and Burke's example encouraged younger lawyers to emulate his fearless style.
Burke also took a leadership role with the American Bar Association, serving at the helm of various employment-law committees since 1989.
But Burke's contributions to the firm or the law are not what colleagues remember about the 1965 UCLA School of Law graduate. Instead, they recalled his easy manner and his direct and fair approach to his colleagues.
"At a time like this, the practice and other kinds of issues seem unimportant," said John Hilson, who took Burke's place as managing partner of the L.A. office.
"Tom was the kind of guy who could come into your office and spend half an hour talking about anything - from a case, to politics, to firm business. He was just so easy to talk to," Hilson said.
Because of his intense enthusiasm for and knowledge of wine, Burke was the unofficial wine steward for office functions. He traveled extensively through France's wine country and was known to hike the back roads, including taking a trek through Nepal.
Burke was also an avid tennis player and bicyclist. Hilson said Burke had no history of heart trouble but had complained of headaches over the past several weeks.
Burke is survived by his wife, Judy, their four children and two grandchildren.
