Practice Matt focuses primarily on municipal litigation and suretyship law, although he practices extensively in a variety of other areas, from commercial litigation to products liability. Matt also represents companies in the settlement of future medical benefits resulting from workers' comp claims through Medicare Set Asides (MSA). Highlights * Prevailed in summary judgment on behalf of a surety where the court held that the owner/obligee breached a performance bond by limiting who the surety could hire to complete the project when the surety elected to proceed under the takeover provision of the bond. * Obtained summary judgment in favor of a municipality and two police officers against an individual who alleged he was wrongfully arrested for capital murder. * Obtained summary judgment in favor of a municipality where a paramedic services company alleged deprivation of a property interest and procedural due process rights when it was removed from the municipality's E-911 rotation. * Successfully compelled to arbitration a plaintiff's claim involving complex reinsurance agreements. * Obtained a complete dismissal for Honda in a products liability action stemming from allegations of a defect in one of their ATVs. * Obtained a complete dismissal for a distributor marketing air purifiers to Brookstone Stores in a potential class action dispute. * Obtained a complete dismissal of claims against a physician stemming from his care and treatment of a prisoner in a county jail. Honors And Awards As a student at the University of Alabama School of Law, Matt served as an editor on the Alabama Law Review. Matt is a member of the Defense Research Institute, the American Bar Association, the Alabama State Bar and the Birmingham Bar Association, where he served as a member of its Diversity Task Force Committee. Community Involvement In the Spring of 2010, Matt participated in "Law Week" by speaking to 8th grade students at Martha Gaskins Middle School about civics and the law. Matt and his family are members of Cahaba Park Presbyterian Church. Reported Cases New View, Inc. v. McCrory Bldg. Co., Inc., 2011 WL 2385906 (N.D. Fla. June 10, 2011) Guarantee Co. of North America USA v. Wainwright, 2011 WL 1807454 (M.D. Ala. May 11, 2011) Fidelity & Deposit Co. of Maryland v. Jefferson County Commission, 756 F. Supp. 2d 1329 (N.D. Ala. 2010) Northbrook Indemnity Co. v. First Automotive Service Corp., N.M., 2008 WL 3009899 (M.D. Fla. Aug. 1, 2008) First Automotive Service Corp., N.M. v. First Colonial Ins. Co., 2008 WL 816973 (M.D. Fla. Mar. 25, 2008) Matthews v. Brookstone Stores, Inc., 469 F. Supp. 2d 1056 (S.D. Ala. 2007) Phillips v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., 2006 WL 1889564 (S.D. Ala. July 10, 2006) Phillips v. American Honda Motor Co., Inc., 438 F. Supp. 2d 1328, (S.D. Ala. 2006) Matthews v. Brookstone Stores, Inc., 431 F. Supp. 2d 1219 (S.D. Ala. 2006) Speeches And Publications "Deposition: Practical Skills," Brown Bag Lunch Seminar for Students, Cumberland School of Law, September 23, 2010. "Alabama's Motor Vehicle Lemon Law Statute," presented to representatives of regional Honda and Acura dealerships, May 10, 2007, Birmingham, AL. Related News 1/27/2012, Wright, Bates and DeBuys Prevail in Nursing Home Malpractice Arbitration 9/23/2010, Starnes Davis Florie Welcomes Five New Associates |