Former Supreme Court and Legal Affairs Correspondent for ABC News
Manny Medrano is an experienced trial attorney who focuses on white collar criminal defense, financial litigation, and internal investigations. He has defended corporations, senior executives, public officials and private individuals in criminal investigations, regulatory actions, trials and appeals. He has extensive anti-corruption and compliance experience in all aspects of Foreign Corrupt Practices Act (FCPA) compliance and enforcement.
Prosecutor
Mr. Medrano is a former federal prosecutor in the U.S. Attorney’s Office in Los Angeles, where he served as Chief of the Asset Forfeiture Section, and Deputy Chief of the Criminal Complaints Unit. In this role he conducted lengthy grand jury investigations, and prosecuted cases involving complex financial crime and RICO, money laundering, narcotics, government fraud, and violent crime. He was recognized for his outstanding government service with numerous awards and commendations from federal investigative agencies, including the DEA, FBI, ATF and IRS, among others. Mr. Medrano has tried numerous precedent-setting cases as lead prosecutor, including the 1985 kidnapping, torture and murder of DEA Special Agent Enrique Camarena in Mexico, which was the subject of the Netflix program “Narcos Mexico” and Amazon Prime Video docuseries “The Last Narc”. For his work on the Camarena case he received the prestigious Department of Justice Director’s Award for Superior Performance. As a federal prosecutor he tried 60 cases to verdict, never losing a jury trial.
Keynote Speaker
Mr. Medrano is a recognized thought leader and sought-after speaker. He has served as a Lecturer and Group Leader for the U.S. Attorney General’s Trial Advocacy Program. He has served as an adjunct Professor of Law at the University of Southern California Law School, Loyola Law School, Pepperdine University School of Law, and Southwestern University School of Law, where he taught Evidence, Trial Advocacy, Ethics, and Negotiation. He has also lectured as a visiting faculty member at the Harvard Law School’s nationally-recognized Trial Advocacy Workshop. Mr. Medrano has spoken at numerous training sessions for state and federal law enforcement officials around the country and is often a featured keynote speaker and panelist at bar and judicial association conferences on a wide range of legal and media topics.
Emmy Award-Winning Legal Correspondent
Mr. Medrano has an impressive background in legal media. He is a former member of the prestigious ranks of the U.S. Supreme Court press corps, where he served as a Supreme Court/Legal Affairs correspondent for ABC News in Washington, D.C. He has further distinguished himself as an Emmy award-winning reporter/anchor for KTLA News and KNBC News in Los Angeles. He appears regularly as a legal commentator on network and local television and radio programs, including ABC, NBC, CNN, MSNBC, CNBC and NPR. He has been profiled and quoted in numerous publications, including the Wall Street Journal, New York Times, Los Angeles Times and Los Angeles Daily Journal.
Philanthropy
Mr. Medrano is active in numerous charities. He has received numerous awards and recognition for his work benefiting the community from members of Congress and state legislators, as well as corporations, government agencies, non-profit entities and universities.
Conquering the Tough Times Ahead
Manny’s most personal keynote speech is a powerful presentation that resonates with audiences because it touches on the themes of personal obstacles and the irrepressible human spirit. Born into an impoverished immigrant household, Manny pulled himself out of a crime-ridden barrio to go on to graduate with honors from Harvard College and then Harvard Law School, culminating in two immensely successful careers. With humor and unflinching passion, Manny challenges listeners to conquer fear and self-doubt during these difficult and uncertain times. He inspires audience members to embark on their own journey of self-discovery and empowerment as a means to reach their personal and professional goals.
The Collapse of Traditional Journalism, and the Rise of New Social Media
America’s financial and auto industries are not the only ones in crisis. There is also massive upheaval taking place in journalism. Evening newscasts have been replaced by 24/7 internet journalism. Foreign bureaus are closing. Newspapers are shuttering operations as advertising revenue plummets. In this hard-hitting and sobering presentation, Manny examines the democratization of American journalism, where consumers are abandoning traditional mainstream media outlets in favor of bloggers and citizen journalists. But at what cost? The demise of traditional journalism has translated into more independent, but less aggressive newsgathering. With journalism at a dangerous tipping point, Manny discusses the future of news coverage and its impact on our society, and offers insights on how listeners can adapt to the dramatic changes occurring in the delivery of important news and information.
The High Court: A Supreme Controversy
A former member of the prestigious U.S. Supreme Court press corps, Manny is the only member in its long history to actually try a case heard before the Court. He discusses its inner-workings, as well as landmark, controversial decisions of the highest court in the land. He offers unique insights into the political “chess game” unfolding daily as President Trump's Supreme Court nominees are thrown into the public arena, and examines their potential legal and political impact on the high court and our society for decades to come.
Trial by Sound Byte: Law in the New Millennium
An experienced, award-winning trial attorney and television broadcast journalist, Manny provides a behind-the-scenes look at current and headline-grabbing legal stories. From notorious cases involving celebrities, to high profile political cases, to the controversy over cameras in the courtroom, Manny cuts through the legal jargon and focuses on the people, players and issues behind the headlines.
Five Things I Wish I’d Learned at Harvard Law School
A must-hear presentation for attorneys, judges and even non-lawyers, Manny shares insights and lessons learned from almost 30 years in the trenches as an award-winning trial attorney and TV broadcast journalist. While torts, contracts and constitutional law were among the required courses at Harvard Law School, they could not prepare Manny for many of the tough issues he confronted in professional life. Just some of these issues include reacting when a contract was placed on his life, consoling families of murder victims, dealing with the media in high profile cases, learning how to business develop or “rainmake,” and connecting with jurors to accomplish a 60-0 win record. Manny discusses these and other poignant lessons learned in the practice of law and throughout his journalism career that he now applies to all facets of his personal and professional endeavors.
