Peter Morris, a former Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California, is a tenacious advocate for institutional clients, senior executives, and individuals in complex, high-stakes litigation, including white collar defense, civil rights litigation, and regulatory enforcement actions. Clients turn to Peter when facing allegations of securities, banking, and healthcare fraud; criminal antitrust; bribery; money laundering; tax evasion; and environmental crimes.
Peter also has a growing and impactful civil rights practice. He has represented clients in precedent-setting litigation against law enforcement and public institutions. In Williams v. LASD, LAC, et al., Peter secured a $2 million damages award and $2 million in attorneys’ fees on behalf of a mother whose unarmed son was fatally shot by sheriff’s deputies during a mental health crisis. The case involved extensive pro bono work, aggressive discovery efforts, and a rare entry of default judgment based on the defendants’ misconduct. In R.L. v. AUSD, LAC, et al., Peter is currently representing a high school student in a civil rights lawsuit against a public school district and LA County, challenging a wrongful expulsion that violated the student’s constitutional rights.
Credentials
Education
- Cornell University, A.B., cum laude
- Harvard Law School, J.D., cum laude, Managing Editor, Civil Rights and Civil Liberties Law Review
Bar Admissions
- California
Court Admissions
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
- U.S. District Court for the District of Massachusetts
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Louisiana
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan
- U.S. Supreme Court