Tom Gatlin is a shareholder in the law firm of Epsten Grinnell & Howell, APC. Tom graduated from the University of California, Berkeley, with academic distinction in March 1971, and obtained his law degree from Hastings College of Law in May 1975. He was admitted to the California State Bar in December 1975.

Tom worked for several years as the Corporate Counsel and Vice-President of Cygnus Corporation, a management company working exclusively with community associations. While there, he gained extensive experience in legal issues affecting community associations, as well as practical knowledge of how associations are managed, their needs, authority, and limitations from a business point of view.

Tom has extensive experience in community association reconstruction projects following construction defect litigation. Given his background in association management, Tom brings to the firm a unique ability to apply the law to the practical realities faced by an association's board of directors. Tom is a frequent lecturer and an active member of the San Diego and Greater Inland Empire Chapters of the Community Associations Institute, and was recognized as the 1995 Speaker of the Year by the San Diego Chapter.