Tom McLain has been involved in international legal and business matters his entire educational and professional career. During most of his career as an attorney he specialized in international business transactions, with special emphasis on intellectual property licensing related to the entertainment industry throughout the world. He has been a partner or senior counsel at Hogan Lovells US LLP, Arnold & Porter, Sidley, Perkins Coie and Manatt, and he was a foreign law consultant at Nagashima, Ohno & Tsunematsu in Tokyo. As an attorney he has spearheaded entertainment industry transactions throughout the world, representing or negotiating against all the major U.S. studios and many of the intellectual propriety licensors. Signature transactions include Tokyo Disneyland and Universal Studios Japan. In addition, McLain founded and managed the Asian operations of Balcor Shearson Lehman International Realty Company, and he was a partner at Wings Partners, which acquired Northwest Airlines, where he oversaw strategic planning in Asia and the monetization of real estate assets in Japan. Currently, he is a founding partner of OakGrove Partners, an early-stage investment firm, and he consults with clients globally on licensing for large scale entertainment venues. McLain served on the board of Mitsubishi UFJ Securities (US) for six years.

McLain was the Chairman of ASSC for 10 years, and he was a Global Trustee of the Asia Society for 12 years. President Clinton appointed McLain to two terms each on the U.S.-Japan Conference on Cultural and Educational Interchange (CULCON) and the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission (JUSFC). He also has served on the advisory boards of Duke’s Sanford School of Public Policy, UCLA’s Luskin School of Public Affairs, and the Library Foundation of Los Angeles.