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Matthew Collette

Massey & Gail LLP
The Wharf
1000 Maine Ave. SW
Suite 450
Washington, D.C. 20024
Office: 202.652.4511
Direct: 202.795.3326
Fax: 312.379.0467
   
Matthew Collette
Senior Counsel

Matthew Collette is a trial and appellate lawyer with more than 35 years of experience representing clients in high-stakes litigation. He has argued more than 100 cases in the federal courts of appeals, appearing in every federal circuit, and handles complex matters involving antitrust, ERISA, banking, contract, constitutional, and administrative law. His clients include Fortune 500 companies, trade associations, and nonprofit organizations across the banking, transportation, and healthcare industries.

Before joining Massey & Gail, Matt served for three decades in the Civil Division of the United States Department of Justice, including as Deputy Director of the Appellate Staff and as Senior Counsel to the Associate Attorney General. In those roles, he briefed, argued, and supervised some of the government’s most significant and sensitive cases, including matters involving constitutional law and national security.

Matt also served as an Adjunct Professor at the Johns Hopkins University Carey Business School, where he taught Legal Issues in Medicine.

  • Successfully represented former U.S. Attorney General John Ashcroft before the Supreme Court of the United States, which held the Attorney General was entitled to qualified immunity in connection with the use of material witness warrants in terrorism cases.
  • Represented the United States as amicus curiae before the Supreme Court of the United States in an Establishment Clause challenge involving legislative prayer, contributing to a favorable decision.
  • Represented the United States as lead appellate counsel in litigation arising from the Deepwater Horizon oil spill, defending a finding of gross negligence against BP.
  • Represented the United States in one of the first federal appellate decisions involving habeas corpus petitions brought by detainees at Guantanamo Bay before the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit, leading to a decision favorable to the United States.
  • Obtained reversal in the U.S. Court of Appeals for the D.C. Circuit of a nationwide class certification in litigation challenging the Terrorist Screening Database.
  • Represented the National Association of Realtors in nationwide antitrust class action litigation involving challenges to buyer broker compensation practices; directed defense strategy and joint defense efforts in litigation seeking tens of billions of dollars in damages.
  • Represented JPMorgan Chase in high-profile litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Southern District of New York arising from claims brought by Epstein victims and the U.S. Virgin Islands concerning the bank’s provision of banking services to Jeffrey Epstein; resolved the matter on confidential terms shortly before trial.
  • Represented the trustees of a Taft-Hartley health fund in ERISA litigation in the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Illinois involving breach of fiduciary duty and administrative expense claims; obtained summary judgment as primary author of the summary judgment briefing and a key participant at oral argument.
  • Obtained reversal of a district court decision holding that an immigrant lacked standing to challenge the denial of a labor certification request.
  • Prevailed in the court of appeals as appointed amicus on behalf of a federal employee in a disability discrimination case.

  • University of Southern California Gould School of Law, J.D., first in class, 1988
  • Brigham Young University, B.A.

  • Super Lawyers (2022–present), Washington, D.C.
  • Attorney General’s Award for Excellence in Furthering the Interests of National Security, U.S. Department of Justice
  • Attorney General’s Distinguished Service Award, U.S. Department of Justice
  • Stuart Schiffer Award, Civil Division, U.S. Department of Justice

  • Supreme Court of the United States
  • United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Sixth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Eighth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia Circuit
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit
  • United States District Court for the Northern District of Illinois
  • United States District Court for the Central District of California
  • United States District Court for the District of Columbia
  • United States District Court for the District of Maryland
  • California
  • District of Columbia
  • New York

  • Can the SBA Justify Its Decision to Release Only a Partial List of PPP Loan Recipients? (2020), The National Law Journal
  • Draining the Reservoir: The Steady Erosion of Credibility at the DOJ (2019), The National Law Journal
  • High Court Creates New FOIA Playing Field (2019), Law360

  • Board Member, Forage Center for International Peacekeeping and Humanitarian Education