Tuesday, July 20, 2021 | 8:20 a.m.
Tom Gallagher
Tom Gallagher was a lifelong advocate of education, something witnessed in the respected lawyer and business leader’s work with various causes in Southern Nevada.
The former Caesars Entertainment executive was the co-founder of the Guinn Center for Policy Priorities, taught business law and ethics at the UNLV law school, and served on the boards of the Black Mountain Institute, Desert Research Institute Foundation and Vegas PBS.
Gallagher and his wife, Mary Kay, were also among the donors to establish scholarships for the first class of the Kirk Kerkorian School of Medicine at UNLV.
Gallagher died Thursday at a hospital in California after a yearlong battle with cancer. He was 76.
“UNLV will never forget the impact he had here and in Southern Nevada,” UNLV President Keith Whitfield said in a statement.
The Guinn Center think tank was established in 2014 to identify policies to support a thriving Southern Nevada. The intention was to have a research center that was data-driven, independent and nonpartisan.
“I knew Tom for many, many years,” said Don Snyder, chairman of the board for the center. “I always had the highest respect for him. As a lawyer and as an executive, he had a long and impressive career. At the Guinn Center, he was able to assemble people who really helped the center prosper.”
Gallagher was a graduate of Harvard Law School and became chief legislative council for former U.S. Sen. John Tunney of California.
Gallagher went on to spend two decades practicing law with Los Angeles-based Gibson Dunn and Crutcher, where he became managing partner of its London and Riyadh, Saudi Arabia, offices.
He eventually made his way to Las Vegas, where he had an extensive career in real estate and hospitality, holding executive positions with the Griffin Group, Resorts International, Hilton Hotels Corp. and Caesars Entertainment (formerly Park Place Entertainment).
He helped lead Park Place during the difficult times after the Sept. 11, 2001, terrorist attacks, Caesars officials said.
“The legacy he leaves behind is one we are proud to be a part of and our hearts are with his family,” Caesars said in a statement.
Gallagher’s generosity was most felt at UNLV, where he was a longtime member of the UNLV Foundation Board of Trustees and supported many university programs.
Las Vegas Sun reporter Bryan Horwath contributed to this report.
