Chris Morales

Christopher Francis Morales is the founding attorney of The Morales Law Firm in San Francisco. He was admitted to the State Bar of California on June 13, 1991, and his license is active. He is a Certified Specialist in Criminal Law, a designation conferred by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization ^[1][3]. He has been in private practice since 1991, handling felony, misdemeanor, and juvenile criminal cases in counties throughout California as well as federal matters.

Morales defends clients against charges including murder, drug crimes, driving under the influence, theft, assault and battery, sex crimes, three-strikes cases, and white collar offenses such as mail fraud, securities fraud, tax crimes, and money laundering. He is admitted to the United States Supreme Court, the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals, and the United States District Courts for the Northern and Eastern Districts of California. His high-profile matters have included the Bilitnikoff murder case and the 22nd Bryant Street gang-rape case, described by his firm as the largest rape prosecution in San Francisco history, and he served as an expert commentator for Fox News during the Scott Peterson murder trial ^[2].

A native San Franciscan, Morales graduated from the University of California, Berkeley with a bachelor's degree in earth science in 1984 and earned his J.D. from Santa Clara University School of Law in 1990, where he received a Community Service Award. Before law school he worked as a licensed commodity broker ^[2].

His recognitions include selection to The National Trial Lawyers Top 100 Trial Lawyers in 2014 and 2015 ^[4], Northern California Super Lawyers from 2013 through 2015 ^[5], and Rue Ratings' Best Attorneys of America in 2015 ^[6]. He has published articles including a Daily Journal piece on the definition of insider trading and consumer guides on criminal procedure, and has spoken on topics such as cleaning up a criminal record and the immigration consequences of criminal convictions.

Morales has served on the boards of Huckleberry Youth Programs, the San Mateo County Bar Association (2006–2009), and the San Francisco Lawyers Club (2003–2005), and was president of the board of La Raza Centro Legal, a nonprofit law office serving low-income, Spanish-speaking clients, in 1998–1999. He was a founding member and 1995–1996 president of the La Raza Lawyers Association of San Mateo County, chaired the San Mateo Private Defender Committee in 2005, served on the San Francisco Juvenile Justice Coordinating Council, and was vice president of the San Francisco Hispanic Chamber of Commerce board in 2001–2002. He is a member of the National Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers and California Attorneys for Criminal Justice ^[2].

Recognition

• Certified Specialist in Criminal Law — State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization (2003) ^[1]
• Top 100 Trial Lawyers — The National Trial Lawyers (2015) ^[2]
• Super Lawyers, Northern California — Super Lawyers (2015) ^[2]
• Best Attorneys of America — Rue Ratings (2015) ^[2]