Matthew F. Burger

Matthew F. Burger

For more than a decade, Matthew F. Burger has represented scores of national coal producers, contract miners, natural gas companies and energy companies in litigation and corporate matters throughout the country. He is chair of the firm's Energy & Natural Resources Group.

He is also co-chairman of the firm's Federal and State Political Action Committees.

Matthew has served as lead trial counsel in federal and state courts and arbitration tribunals for clients in Pennsylvania, New York, New Jersey, Washington, D.C., West Virginia, Virginia, North Carolina, Ohio, Kentucky, Tennessee, Florida, Indiana, Illinois, Michigan, Missouri, Oklahoma, Texas, Colorado and Montana. In particular, Matthew has developed a recognized specialization representing coal producers in force majeure claims and contractual price arbitrations and redeterminations, and has successfully counseled and represented clients throughout the country in such matters.

Matthew also serves in the role of corporate counsel for a number of coal clients. He has significant experience negotiating, drafting and litigating coal supply contracts, operations and contract mining agreements, mineral lease agreements and related commercial transactions. Most recently, at the request of CONSOL Energy, Inc., Matthew served on an interim basis as CONSOL's in-house contract counsel, with legal oversight over its coal supply agreements, transportation contracts and other commercial agreements.

Some of Matthew's recent notable engagements include:

· Representing as lead trial counsel an international mining and construction company in a $60 million commercial arbitration in Denver, CO, to set the contract mining price for Powder River Basin coal reserves.

· Serving as lead trial counsel for an international coal company in litigation in New Jersey against a national utility company concerning the interpretation and enforcement of a 20-year coal supply agreement.

· Representing a national coal company in a declaratory judgment actions in Indiana and Illinois upholding the validity of the coal company's force majeure declaration.

· Representing a national coal company in a declaratory judgment action in the District Court for Colorado in a dispute over a contract mining agreement.

· Representing a national coal company in a Washington, D.C. arbitration to determine the price paid under a long-term coal supply agreement, and to determine appropriate indices to adjust such price.

· Representing a national coal company in North Carolina federal court litigation involving complex transactional claims against a third-party coal supplier and a national utility company.

· Representing a national coal company in a large commercial arbitration in Washington, D.C., concerning the client's coal supply agreements with a large power supplier. Successful resolution of arbitration included allowance of the client's nominated coal prices and acceptance of force majeure claim.

· Representing a national coal company and related subsidiaries in a large federal bankruptcy case in Tennessee. Successfully litigated numerous contested claims resulting in the payment of millions of dollars to debtors' estate.

· Winning a substantial bench verdict in Ohio upholding the right of a transfer agent subsidiary of a national bank to enforce non-competition and non-solicitation agreements with a former executive employee. Verdict included an order precluding competitor's use of client's trade secrets, and extraordinary relief in the form of compensation paid to employee during period of disloyalty.

· In a case of first impression in the U.S. District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania, upholding the right of a Dutch corporation involved in an adversarial proceeding before the Enterprise Court in the Netherlands to obtain substantial discovery in the United States from joint venture subsidiary.

· Representing national information technology company in a $100 million trade secret/corporate raiding case in Virginia federal and state courts.

Matthew has been named as one of Pittsburgh Magazine's "40 under 40," to the Pittsburgh Business Times' first-ever list of 50 "Fast Trackers" and as a Pennsylvania Super Lawyers® Rising Star in 2005, 2006 and 2007. He has been quoted in numerous media regarding legal and economic development matters, including the New York Times, "NBC Nightly News," the Pittsburgh Post Gazette and the Pittsburgh Business Times.

Publications & Speeches

Pittsburgh Litigation Attorney Matt Burger Quoted on Millcraft Industries CFO in Pittsburgh Business Times
November 7, 2008

Civic & Charitable

Pittsburgh Urban Magnet Project, founder and past president

Pittsburgh XPAC, founder and chairman

Citizens to Save Our Community, former chairman

Pittsburgh Business Climate Task Force, former board member

Regional Renaissance Partnership, former board member

Beginning with Books, board member

Affiliations

Hearing Committee for the Disciplinary Board of the Pennsylvania Supreme Court

Professional Ethics Committee, Allegheny County Bar Association