Matt is known for his vigorous, ethical representation of employers in traditional labor law matters and collective bargaining negotiations, employment and labor litigation, and before a range of courts and government agencies.

Overview

Matt's practice includes employment counseling, employment litigation, and traditional labor law.

Matt is a traditional labor law practitioner, helping both unionized and nonunionized employers navigate the National Labor Relations Act. He helps nonunionized employers remain so, developing positive employee relations strategies and advising through organizing campaigns and National Labor Relations Board-run elections. He helps unionized employers defend and bring unfair labor practice charges in NLRB litigation. He also aids management in contract administration: negotiating CBAs, responding to grievances, arguing labor arbitrations, and preparing for strikes.

Matt is an experienced and aggressive litigator. He helps businesses prepare for and handle complex employment litigation. He has handled the full range of employment litigation matters for clients, including FLSA wage and hour collective actions, whistleblower (with a significant amount of whistleblower experience in the highly-regulated railroad and transportation industries), retaliation, discrimination, and wrongful termination.

Matt is a business partner. For many businesses, the best employment litigation is the employment litigation that never happens. Litigation, while sometimes unavoidable, is time-consuming and stressful. As a business partner, Matt advises his clients—small family companies, large public corporations, and employers in highly regulated industries, with specific experience with energy producers, retailers such as automobile and truck dealerships, and railroads—on the full range of employment issues to help stop problems that can lead to litigation before they start. As an employment counselor, Matt advises on hiring and firing, leaves, discipline, investigations, reductions-in-force, non-competition and non-solicitation agreements, and other complex employment issues under constantly evolving federal and state labor laws.

Matt is practical. He knows the right answer is hardly ever the same for two different businesses. He works hard to understand his clients' unique businesses, and understands that a "one size fits one" approach is the best way to meet his clients' needs.

Experience

Prior to joining the firm, Matt served as judicial law clerk to Chief Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea of the Minnesota Supreme Court. 

After filing a summary judgment motion, Matt obtained voluntary dismissal, with prejudice, of disability discrimination and reasonable accommodation claims for a global agribusiness. He obtained summary judgment dismissal of similar claims against an aerospace and defense company.

Matt has successfully helped numerous employers during union organizing campaigns.  As examples, he successfully counseled a California business through efforts by its employees to unionize. Employees rejected the union effort in NLRB election, and Matt’s client remained a union-free employer. He counseled a Fortune 500 employer through a similar organizing campaign in the Midwest. Union organizing efforts failed and that company remained union-free. He also obtained a dismissal of Union Representation Petition for a regional energy utility company in Montana.

Matt has represented numerous employers before the NLRB. He has successfully defended numerous unfair labor practice charges.  He brought an unfair labor practice charge against the union at a Minneapolis employer, ending the union’s unlawful picking of a real estate developer. He defended a lumberyard against an NLRB claim for withdrawal of recognition, allowing employees to vote to remove the union and making the Minnesota employer union-free.

Matt recently negotiated a favorable settlement for a small nonprofit health care provider facing state whistleblower claims.

He is a frequent writer and speaker on employment and labor law topics.  He recently wrote about the National Labor Relations Board’s joint employer standard and changes to the rule, and the Supreme Court’s decision on striking down agency fees from nonconsenting public sector employees.   

News & Insights

Speaking Engagements

Labor Law Updates for Non-Union Employers Panel Discussion, 2016

Publications

"Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Government and Government Contractor Activities Provisions," Stinson's Government Contracting Matters Blog, April 3, 2020

"Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act Small Business Provisions," Stinson's Government Contracting Matters Blog, April 3, 2020

Professional & Civic Activities

Professional & Civic Activities

Federal Bar Association

Minnesota State Bar Association

Speaker at SHRM Conferences

Admissions

  • Minnesota
  • North Dakota
  • U.S. District Court for the District of Minnesota
  • U.S. Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit

Education

University of Minnesota Law School, J.D., magna cum laude, 2011

  • Order of the Coif
  • Best Brief Award
  • Honors in Legal Writing
  • Phi Kappa Phi

University of St. Thomas, B.A., History, summa cum laude, 2008

  • Varsity Baseball Player

Clerkships

  • Chief Justice Lorie Skjerven Gildea, Minnesota Supreme Court
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