Bio
Matt is an accomplished litigator with over a decade of experience in state and federal civil and appellate litigation, as well as in arbitration. As the Practice Group Chair for PilieroMazza’s Litigation & Dispute Resolution Group and Co-Chair of the Firm’s False Claims Act and Audits & Investigations Team, his advocacy for government contractors and commercial businesses on a wide range of topics, across many industries, gives Matt a unique perspective on successful litigation strategies for achieving the best possible outcome for clients.
Matt has significant first-chair trial and appellate experience over a wide range of practice areas, including labor and employment; wage and hour disputes; business litigation, including business torts, unfair competition, trade secrets, and non-compete and non-solicitation disputes; shareholder direct and derivative litigation; securities fraud defense; government and private sector contracts; commercial transactions; and appeals. As Co-Chair for the firm’s False Claims Act and Audits & Investigations Team, Matt helps represent and counsel businesses involved in audits and investigations conducted by the Department of Justice and other federal and state regulators and on matters relating to the False Claims Act. Moreover, Matt has litigated cases in federal courts on behalf of tribes and tribally-owned entities, including the strategic assertion of sovereign immunity defenses. He is also among a small group of lawyers in the country who have represented a company in a successful appeal of a New York Stock Exchange delisting decision.
In addition to earning favorable verdicts, judgments, and settlements on their behalf, Matt is adept at helping clients avoid litigation through counseling, consultation, training, risk management assessments, internal audits and investigations, and adversarial negotiation. Clients in emerging and developing industries benefit from Matt’s ability to navigate complex federal and state laws and regulations, effectively communicate with investors and the public, and manage day-to-day business challenges.
Related Practice Areas
Representative Matters
Representative Experience
- Represents large corporations and small businesses in state and federal courts, arbitration, mediation, and before administrative bodies in labor and employment, appellate, corporate, and general litigation matters
- Litigates bid protests before the Government Accountability Office and the U.S. Court of Federal Claims
- Pursuit and defense of both size and status protests before the U.S. Small Business Administration and its Office of Hearings and Appeals
- Represents and advises clients related to investigations by state Attorneys General, the Federal Bureau of Investigation, and various Offices of Inspector General, including on False Claims Act and Procurement Integrity Act matters
- Prepares commercial contracts, teaming agreements and subcontracts, employee and consultant agreements, leases, and corporate start-up documents for large and small business clients
- Advises companies on employment, business, and risk management practices
- Advises and consults with restaurants, catering companies, and hotels on a wide-range of legal issues affecting the hospitality and food service industries
General Litigation and Dispute Resolution Experience:
- Successfully appealed a New York Stock Exchange decision to delist the stock of a client and publicly-traded company from trading on the Exchange, receiving a unanimous decision on all appealed issues
- Won a judgment for the defense on all claims through a successful plea in bar filed on behalf of a small business client in a Prince William County, Virginia lawsuit wherein a former employee of the company claimed an ownership interest in the company
- Won summary judgment in favor of a Washington, D.C. landlord which had been sued by former tenants for negligence, fraud, and breach of lease
- Won a six-figure jury verdict on behalf of a client in a premises liability matter in Prince George’s County, Maryland
- Obtained a six-figure settlement through mediation for a Washington, D.C. small business whose property was damaged by repeated water infiltrations
Employment Litigation Experience:
- Won a total victory on all argued issues in the Court of Appeals of Maryland in a Wage Payment and Collection Law case which established Maryland public policy and clarified important employment and wage-payment precedents. See Cunningham v. Feinberg, 441 Md. 310 (2015)
- Defended a Washington, D.C. restaurant and its owner in a large-scale Fair Labor Standards Act case, limiting the plaintiff’s claims substantially on summary judgment and then obtaining a full judgment in favor of the clients through a directed verdict at trial
- Defended a government contractor in a class action lawsuit brought by former employees related to wage-payment and employment practices
- Defended a Maryland construction company in federal court against an unpaid wage claim made by a former employee
Government Contracts Experience:
- Successfully defended award of a contract to our client by the U.S. Department of Defense against a bid protest filed at the Government Accountability Office where protester argued that the agency unreasonably evaluated the offerors’ proposed prices against an allegedly flawed independent government estimate. See Crawford RealStreet Joint Venture, B-415193.2; B-415193.3 (Apr. 2, 2018)
- Successfully protested U.S. Health & Human Services award where the agency unreasonably evaluated the awardee’s proposal and did not have a reasonable basis for selecting awardee’s proposal over protester’s. See Protection Strategies, Inc., B-414684.2 (Nov. 20, 2017)
- Obtained corrective action in several bid protests at the Government Accountability Office after filing bid protests on behalf of clients
- Successfully defended award of a contract to our client by the U.S. Department of the Interior against a bid protest filed at the Government Accountability Office where protester alleged that the agency unreasonably evaluated its proposal. See Dexis Consulting Grp., B-415483 (Dec. 26, 2017)
- Successfully defended federal government contractor’s verified status and registration in the VetBiz Vendor Information Pages (VIP) database after U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Center for Verification and Evaluation (CVE) proposed it for cancellation
Investigations Experience:
- Represented Service Disabled Veteran Owned Small Business (SDVOSB) in responding to a subpoena, civil investigative demand, and interview request issued by the U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs Office of Inspector General
- Represented a Woman-Owned Small Business (WOSB) in responding to a subpoena issued by the Department of Justice (DOJ) Office of Inspector General
- Represented HUBZone Small Business in civil and criminal False Claims Act investigation initiated by the U.S. Small Business Administration (SBA) and DOJ
- Represented tribally-owned entity and 8(a) program participant in responding to a subpoena issued by the NASA Office of Inspector General
- Represented federal government contractor in responding to dual civil and criminal investigations initiated by multiple branches of the U.S. military, as well as multiple grand jury subpoenas issued by the DOJ
Credentials
Education
- Georgetown University Law Center, LL.M., 2010
- University of Baltimore School of Law, J.D., 2008, Cum Laude, Production Editor, University of Baltimore Law Review
- University of Virginia, B.S.Ed., 2003
Admissions
- Maryland
- District of Columbia
- Massachusetts
- Virginia
- New York
- U.S. Supreme Court
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Fourth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, Eleventh Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals, District of Columbia Circuit
- U.S. District Court, District of Maryland
- U.S. District Court, District of Columbia
- U.S. District Court, District of Massachusetts
- U.S. District Court, District of Colorado
- U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court, Western District of Virginia
- U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York
- U.S. District Court, District of New Mexico
- U.S. Court of Federal Claims
Activities/Honors
Activities
- Pro Bono Attorney, Montgomery County Bar Foundation
- Member, Prince George’s County Chamber of Commerce
- Member, Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington
- Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America
- Member, Trial Law Institute
- Member, Diversity Law Institute
- Barrister, Order of Veritas
- Advocate, Order of Certus
Honors
- District of Columbia Super Lawyers® Rising Star, Employment Litigation, 2015-Present
- Maryland Super Lawyers®, Employment Litigation, 2015-2017
Activities
- Pro Bono Attorney, Montgomery County Bar Foundation
- Member, Prince George’s County Chamber of Commerce
- Member, Restaurant Association of Metropolitan Washington
- Fellow, Litigation Counsel of America
- Member, Trial Law Institute
- Member, Diversity Law Institute
- Barrister, Order of Veritas
- Advocate, Order of Certus
Honors
- District of Columbia Super Lawyers® Rising Star, Employment Litigation, 2015-Present
- Maryland Super Lawyers®, Employment Litigation, 2015-2017