Matthew John Matern

Matthew J. Matern is the founding attorney of Matern Law Group PC. With over 25 years of experience as a trial lawyer, he has built a thriving practice on one driving mission: providing all members of the community with fair and equitable access to the highest-quality legal representation available.

Throughout his career, Mr. Matern has championed the cause of vulnerable employees in discrimination, harassment, and wage and hour disputes in state and federal courts. As a lead trial attorney, he counsels clients at both the single-litigant and class-action level, restoring the balance of power to those who have been victimized by illegal practices such as public safety and health violations, sexual and racial discrimination, retaliation, and wrongful termination.

In addition to leading a team of world-class attorneys, Mr. Matern plays an active role in all aspects of the firm’s civil litigation cases – from case inception, law and motion, discovery, and settlement negotiations through final resolution.

Committed to reaching the best possible outcome for each individual case, his efforts have resulted in millions of dollars in settlements and compensation packages, improved working conditions for thousands of employees, clearer definitions of actionable offenses, and landmark courtroom decisions – including a groundbreaking California judgment on “MeToo” witness testimonies.

Beyond his legal work, Mr. Matern is proudly dedicated to serving his community. He is an active advocate for numerous organizations that protect employee and consumer rights and works to increase philanthropic cooperation through The Satyagraha Foundation – a nonprofit organization he founded in 2017.

In late 2022, Mr. Matern also launched an environment-focused podcast and radio show, A Climate Change with Matt Matern, to interview and collaborate with influential innovators, scientists, entrepreneurs, and thought leaders from all over the world to inform the audience on current environmental issues, while inspiring listeners to take action and create a coalition to save the planet.

Verdicts and Settlements:

• Ventura v. ABM – Secured a judgment of over $1,000,000.
• Barba v. Blue Boys, Inc. – Secured a $500,000 award for emotional distress and a $2 million award for punitive damages.
• Rich v. Koi Restaurant – Secured a judgement of over $500,000 in compensatory and punitive damages.

His expertise has also led to numerous appellate victories, each of which resulted in a published opinion:

• Pantoja v. Anton – a groundbreaking California judgment on “me too” witnesses in sexual harassment and discrimination cases.
• Fuentes v. AutoZone, Inc. – an important case that helped more clearly define what constitutes sexual harassment.
• Julian v. Glenair, Inc. – a precedent-setting case upholding an employee’s rights to be paid properly.
• Franco v. Athens Disposal Company, Inc. – a leading case on class-action waivers.
• ABM Industries Overtime Cases – a case that protected the rights of 55,000 janitors to be paid in accordance with California law.
• (Pauley v. CF Entertainment)
• Ventura v. ABM Industries, Inc. – the first reported California case using the Unruh Act to prosecute a sexual assault at work.