Vida L. Thomas, ’93, is an AV-rated attorney who has practiced law for over 25 years. In that time, she has conducted well over 200 workplace investigations and is experienced in complying with Title IX, Title Five, the Public Safety Officers Procedural Bill of Rights, and the Firefighters Procedural Bill of Rights. She is currently the Managing Partner of Oppenheimer Investigations Group LLP.  

She has considerable experience investigating matters within a union setting and is particularly adept at investigating complexes involving high-profile employers and individuals. Thomas serves as an expert witness in state and federal employment lawsuits and mediates litigation and non-litigation matters. A founding member of the Association of Workplace Investigations (AWI), Thomas co-chaired the AWI Best Practices committee and helped establish the AWI guidelines for conducting workplace investigations. 

While obtaining her Juris Doctor from the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law in the early 1990s, she was the president of Black Law Students Association and president of the International Moot Court team. She currently serves on McGeorge School of Law’s Diversity Alumni Board and regularly speaks to law students about topics related to diversity.

In 2023, she was named to the Daily Journal’s 2023 List of Top Labor and Employment Lawyers, the 2023 Northern California Super Lawyers List, and was recognized as an honoree for the Sacramento Business Journal’s “Women Who Mean Business.”

Throughout 2024, the University of the Pacific McGeorge School of Law will celebrate members of its vast alumni network in honor of the school’s 100-year anniversary. This post is the first in a series highlighting 100 exceptional McGeorge School of Law alumni.

Stay tuned for more blog posts as we celebrate the law school’s centennial anniversary.