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Matthew Garth Kaestner

5.0
Rating: 8.0

Licensed for 39 years

Criminal defense Lawyer at Long Beach, CA
Practice Areas: Criminal Defense, Violent Crime, Domestic Violence ... +2 more

One World Trade Center, Suite 400, Long Beach, CA

About Matthew

Biography

Practice Areas

5

Practice Areas

Criminal Defense 40%

Practice is 100% criminal law. Attorney has over 27 years of experience and is a certified specialist in criminal law, certified by the State Bar of California Board of Legal Specialization. Extensive experience handling major narcotics cases involving search warrants, wiretaps, medicinal marijuana, transportation and possession for sales.

39 years

40%
Violent Crime 30%

Criminal law specialist with over 27 years experience. Extensive experience handling murder, homicide, kidnapping, extortion, attempted murder, gang crimes, felony and misdemeanor assault and other violent crimes.

39 years

30%
Consumer Protection 10%

Extensive experience handling fraud charges including real estate fraud, insurance fraud, employee fraud, extortion and other fraud offenses. Over 27 years of criminal law experience. Certified specialist in criminal law.

39 years

10%
Domestic Violence 10%

Board certified criminal law specialist. Over 27 years of experience handling felony and misdemeanor domestic violence cases. Results include dismissals, acquittal at trial, and plea to reduced charges.

39 years

10%
White Collar Crime 10%

Attorney has over 27 years of experience handling all types of white collar offenses including real estate fraud, insurance fraud, employee embezzlement, identity theft, grand theft and others. Certified specialist in criminal law.

39 years

10%

Fees and Rates

We have not found any cost information for this lawyer

Awards

Platinum Client Champion
AV Preeminent Peer Review Rating

Licenses

Licensed in California for 39 years

State: California

Acquired: 1986

Active

Lawyer disciplined by state licensing authority in 1991

Location

Matthew G.Kaestner, Attorney

One World Trade Center, Suite 400, Long Beach, CA, 90831

www.lbcrimlaw.com

Matthew Garth Kaestner's Reviews

Avvo Review Score

5.0 /5.0

12 Client Reviews

5 star (12)
4 star (0)
3 star (0)
2 star (0)
1 star (0)

Posted by Bob | January 25, 2021 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Excellent lawyer!

Matt got an excellent result in my case. He got my felony case dismissed! Nothing on my record, no jail, no probation. He kept me informed of things along the way and did an excellent job advocating for me. I would highly recommend Matt Kaestner to anyone facing criminal charges.

Posted by Javier | June 16, 2020 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Best lawyer ..

I met attorney Matt Kaestner in January of 2000. I had just been arrested and charged with murder. The first thing Mr. Kaestner said when he introduced himself was that he had some good news and some bad news. He said the bad news was that I was being charged with murder. He said the good news was t...hat he was my lawyer. I was in shock and didn’t know what to think. I was looking at life. Two of my friends had just been convicted of the murder and now I was being charged as an accessory. I quickly learned that Mr. Kaestner was the lawyer I wanted to defend me. Mr. Kaestner aggressively pursued every avenue to prove that I was innocent. He conducted a lot of the investigation personally and used private investigators as well. Although the case was being prosecuted as a gang case, Mr. Kaestner treated me with respect. He was always straight up with me. He dug up so much information that I was being framed by the prosecutor’s witness, that he got the D.A. to offer me a misdemeanor and time served on the day of trial. Later he used the information he developed defending me to get my friend’s conviction thrown out and case dismissed. In the last 20 years Mr. Kaestner has defended me and I have referred him to anyone I knew that needed a criminal lawyer. He has continued to deliver great results again and again. If I ever needed a criminal defense lawyer again, I wouldn’t want anyone other than Matt Kaestner.

Posted by Lisa M. | March 10, 2019 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Matt Kaestner is AWESOME!

My brother, Joey has hired Matt Kaestner to defend him two separate times being charged with assault. I watched Matt in action in the court room during both jury trials and was pretty darn impressed. This guy is smart, organized, determined and an absolute AWESOME attorney. TWICE the jury c...ame back with NOT GUILTY verdicts for my brother. If you are ever in trouble and need an excellent criminal defense attorney, Matt is brilliant! Two thumbs WAY UP!!

Posted by David | November 28, 2018 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Excellent Criminal Attorney - Reduced 3 Felonies to a Misdemeanor

For 32 years I worked with numerous Attorneys. After Matthew Kaestner's efforts in defending a relative I would rate him at the top! There was never any doubt during the process that he was giving his all. His legal ability was obvious and he was respected by the Prosecuting Attorney as well as o...ther court members. The end result was above all expectations. (3 felonies, two of them strikes, settled for a misdemeanor.) If you or a loved one need a first class Attorney protecting you in court on a serious criminal case, I highly recommend Mr. Kaestner!

Posted by JD | November 26, 2018 | Hired Attorney

This review is from a person who hired this attorney.

Best Lawyer in Long Beach

Attorney Kaestner helped get a 23 year old felony conviction set aside and then dismissed completely. Mr. Kaestner was able to do what I thought might be impossible. I had sought the help of two other lawyers who were unable to get it done. Mr. Kaestner told me that it was a long shot, but h...e wrote an excellent motion and then kept the heat on the D.A. and Judge by repeated court appearances. He wouldn’t take no for an answer. What Mr. Kaestner did is the best thing that has ever happened to me. He has truly changed my life. I could not give any professional a higher recommendation. Thank you Mr. Kaestner

See All Client Reviews

Matthew Garth Kaestner's Lawyer Endorsements

Endorse Matthew
Matthew J Ruff headshot
Matthew Ruff

Criminal defense lawyer | Aug 20

Relationship: Worked together on matter

"I endorse this lawyer. Matt is a true fighter for his clients. He does not "roll over" to the DA and this makes him one of the best!"

Tracy A Rogers headshot
Tracy Rogers

Criminal defense lawyer | Jul 15

Relationship: Fellow lawyer in community

"I believe Matthew Kaestner is one of the most effective and diligent attorneys in the criminal defense bar. I am an appellate attorney and have had the opportunity to review transcripts of dozens of defense attorneys- Mr. Kaestner consistently provides top quality legal representation for his clients."

View All Endorsements

No Endorsement Data Available Yet
This attorney hasn't created any attorney endorsements recently on Avvo.

Experience

Rating:  8.0 (Excellent)

Professional misconduct

This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 1991.

Private reproval, public disclosure issued in CA, 1991

updated on 12/02/2018

Private reproval, public disclosure means the attorney did something wrong but may still practice law. The Bar warns the lawyer in hopes that he or she will not repeat the behavior.

Matthew’s comment:

“This reproval was the result of a misdemeanor "harassment" conviction attorney Kaesnter suffered in Oregon concerning an incident that occurred in 1987 involving a personal child custody dispute. Not sure why the state bar or Avvo consider it important. It DID NOT involve a client or the practice of law.”

Honors

2025

Super Lawyer, Super Lawyers

1985

High Honors Trial Practice, Willamette University College of Law

Work Experience

1989 - 1991

Criminal defense attorney, Alternate Defense Counsel

1986 - 1989

Deputy District Attorney, Los Angeles County District Attorney

Associations

1986 - Present

State Bar of California

Member

Long Beach Bar Association

Member

Sample of Legal Cases

People v. Juan Herrera

Murder conviction reversed, case dismissed.

See More Legal Cases

Education

N/A

Willamette University College of Law

N/A

University of the Pacific

Speaking Engagements

2013

Publications

2013

ICDA Summer Seminar 2013 Defending A State Wiretap Case

Activity

Avvo Rating

Our Rating is calculated using information the lawyer has included on their profile in addition to the information we collect from state bar associations and other organizations that license legal professionals. Attorneys who claim their profiles and provide Avvo with more information tend to have a higher rating than those who do not.

What determines Avvo Rating?
  • Experience & background Years licensed, work experience, education
  • Legal community recognition Peer endorsements, associations, awards
  • Legal thought leadership Publications, speaking engagements
  • Discipline
    This lawyer was disciplined by a state licensing authority in 1991
    Disciplinary information may not be comprehensive, or updated. We recommend that you always check a lawyer's disciplinary status with their respective state bar association before hiring them.
Avvo Rating Levels
10.0 - 9.0 Superb8.9 - 8.0 Excellent7.9 - 7.0 Very Good6.9 - 6.0 Good5.9 - 5.0 Average4.9 - 4.0 Concern3.9 - 3.0 Caution2.9 - 2.0 Strong Caution1.9 - 1.0 Extreme Caution