Matthew T. McLaughlin, partner-in-charge of Venable’s New York office, is a commercial litigator who represents clients in complex commercial and securities matters, intellectual property and product liability disputes, and construction litigation, primarily in New York state and federal courts, and before arbitration and mediation panels.
Matt has extensive experience in transnational litigation and in advising clients in the developing law related to electronic signatures. He also has extensive knowledge of the Freedom of Information Law (FOIL) and Freedom of Information Act (FOIA) statutes, having advised New York state, municipal, and quasi-governmental not-for-profit organizations responding to and defending against freedom of information requests.
Matt has represented officers and directors of multinational corporations who were sued in class actions and shareholder derivative actions for securities law violations and other common law, commercially based tort claims.
A recognized commentator on the New York State FOIL statute, Matt has written several pieces on the issue, including a New York Law Journal article that significantly influenced bills before the New York legislature relating to the standard applied to recovering attorneys’ fees in FOIL contests. He has also analyzed and published on the ability of parties to withhold documents containing information protected by public agency privilege.
Matt has served as special counsel in litigations, advising high-net-worth individuals regarding corporate separateness strategies as protection from judgment creditors. He also regularly presents to clients and bar associations on corporate separateness, fraudulent transfers, and veil-piercing tactics and defenses.
In addition, Matt has substantial experience advising clients in the developing area of law related to electronic signatures. He has lectured and written on topics involving E-SIGN and Uniform Electronic Transactions Act (UETA) statutes.
He has represented clients in investigations conducted by the Office of Foreign Asset Control (OFAC), the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the United States Attorney’s Office, and the New York Attorney General’s Office.
Matt is also experienced in transnational litigation, including operation of the Hague Convention, and letters rogatory in the Swiss, Canadian, UK, German, and Norwegian courts.
His work includes litigating mutual legal assistance treaty (MLAT) requests by foreign governments under 28 U.S.C. 1782. Matt has also coordinated parallel proceedings in a variety of non-U.S. jurisdictions.
Experience :
- Blocked an order to show cause seeking to enjoin a shareholder vote authorizing a $1.2 billion corporate acquisition; Nadav Poms v. Dominion Diamond Corp. et al., No. 655733/2017 (Scarpulla, J.)
- Represented plaintiff in Jukin Media Inc. v. Worldstart Inc. in successfully pursuing copyright and trademark licensing claims; 16-civ.-6800 (C.D. Cal. Walter, J.)
- Defended a Canadian oil and gas consulting company in the Southern District of New York against class action claims asserting various violations of the Securities Exchange Act of 1934 and SEC rules thereunder; Collins v. Oilsands Quest Inc., et al., 11 civ. 1288 (Rakoff, J.)
- Represented a pharmaceutical company in a multidistrict litigation proceeding venued in the Eastern District of New York, defending against product liability claims involving the prescription medication Propecia; In re Propecia (Finasteride) Products Liability Litigation, MDL 2331 (Cogan, J.)
- Represented a pharmaceutical company in coordinating in the United States a production of documents from Germany, related to a multidistrict litigation proceeding in District Court in Minnesota; In re: Mirapex Products Liability Litigation, MDL 1836 (Rosenbaum, J.)
- Co-led a trial team that won a decision in California state court on behalf of several banks and institutional investors in an action brought by the trustees of several residential mortgage-backed securities trusts seeking contract reformation; In the Matter of IMPAC SAC Mortgage Pass-Through Trust, 30-2010-00411604 (Orange Co., California, Bauer, J.)
- Prosecuted healthcare fraud claims against a medical practice on behalf of a large New York-based healthcare insurance company
- Secured dismissal of all claims brought against a consumer products company in a patent infringement lawsuit; Arquest v. Kimberly-Clark Worldwide, Inc., 2008 WL 2971775 (McMahon, J.)
- Defeated a preliminary injunction motion raising tortious interference and Lanham Act violation claims against a toy manufacturer; Plasmart v. Wincell International, 442 F. Supp. 2d 53 (Castel, J.)
Education :
- J.D. Fordham University School of Law 1994
- B.A. Philosophy and English cum laude Boston College 1991
Bar Admissions : New York
Court Admissions :
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
- U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York
- U.S. Supreme Court
Professional Memberships :
- Member, American Bar Association
- Member, New York State Bar Association
- Member, Defense Research Institute
- President, Friendly Sons of Saint Patrick in the City of New York, 2015 – 2017; vice-president, 2012 – 2014
- Board member, Fund for Modern Courts, 2015 – present; member, Legislation Committee, 2016 – present
- Member, Federal Bar Council
Cost
Rate : $$$