Tara McCortney
Associate
Los Angeles
tara.mccortney@lw.com
+1.213.891.7817
PRACTICES
- Complex Commercial Litigation
- Litigation & Trial
INDUSTRIES
EDUCATION
- JD, Harvard Law School, 2020
cum laude - BA in Government & International Politics, George Mason University, 2015
summa cum laude
LANGUAGES SPOKEN
- English
PROFILE
Tara McCortney is a litigator focusing on complex commercial litigation. She is experienced in pre-litigation and alternative dispute resolution, drafting and arguing motions, managing large-scale discovery, and state and federal appellate practice.
Tara also maintains an active pro bono practice representing low income tenants, homeowners, and domestic violence survivors in civil court, housing court, family court, and at the appellate level. Tara was honored by Public Counsel’s Consumer Rights & Economic Justice Project as one of their 2023 Pro Bono Award recipients for her outstanding legal service.
Tara received her JD from Harvard Law School. While in law school, Tara served on the boards of the Women’s Law Association and the West Coast Club, and she advised clients as part of her work with the Cyberlaw Clinic.
Prior to joining Latham, Tara was a summer associate in the Los Angeles office. Tara was previously an intern with Greater Boston Legal Services, where she focused on elder, health, and disability law.
EXPERIENCE
Tara’s achievements include:
- Lead associate in a complex commercial litigation matter involving an international dispute over a for-profit medical college. Tara represented an investor in the medical college and achieved a complete victory when the federal court dismissed the case with prejudice.
- Represented a disruptive technology company in an intellectual property and complex contractual dispute with a competitor. Tara aggressively pursued affirmative claims and effectively defended counterclaims to achieve a favorable settlement.
- Represented a public company before the Sixth Circuit Court of Appeals in connection with a federal securities lawsuit. Won the appeal in a published decision.
- Lead associate on an appeal to the California Court of Appeals resulting in a favorable published decision benefiting survivors of domestic violence seeking restraining orders in California family court.