Matthew Henry Simmons, Attorney

Educational and Professional Background:

A Washington, D.C.-area native, Mr. Simmons received his law degree Magna Cum Laude from the Georgetown University Law Center in 1996, resulting in his appointment to the Order of the Coif. In addition to graduating with high honors, he earned the American Bankruptcy Law Journal Prize while still in law school. Mr. Simmons holds a B.A. in economics from the University of Maryland at College Park, which he received in 1993.

An experienced litigator, Mr. Simmons spent two years with Skadden, Arps, Slate, Meagher & Flom's Delaware office, where he had the good fortune to learn Chancery Court practice before the nation's premier business court under experienced business attorneys. At Schnader, Harrison, Segal & Lewis, LLP in Philadelphia, he worked with a team of the region's most talented litigators before returning to Maryland in 1999.

This background has equipped Mr. Simmons to help individual and corporate clients grapple with a range of legal and business issues. He handles business disputes of all types, including business break-ups, corporate control battles, employment disputes, intellectual property matters, complex tort cases and fiduciary duty litigation.

Mr. Simmons' track record of success is not limited to the courthouse, but also extends to the negotiating table and formal Alternative Dispute Resolution processes. To date, he has conducted myriad out-of-court negotiations (often avoiding the costly litigation process altogether). He regularly mediates and arbitrates matters where appropriate. Using these tools, Mr. Simmons consistently succeeds at helping his clients obtain favorable outcomes prior to trial, even in situations where some in-court litigation is inevitable.

Notably, Mr. Simmons is among the most knowledgeable persons in the United States in the International Emergency Economic Powers Act, as modified by the U.S.A. P.A.T.R.I.O.T. Act, having been in the vanguard of attorneys involved in challenges to the "PATRIOT Act" after its enactment in 2001. He has worked on a range of 9/11 related litigation and was solicited by the ABA's Litigation magazine to draft an article based on his experiences defending persons targeted by the federal government in the Post-9/11 era for the magazine's Spring 2003 issue dedicated to the topic of prejudice: "Associating with the 'Enemy': Defending the Rights of Muslims in Post 9/11 America," Litigation, Vol. 29 No. 3, Spring 2003, at 31.

In 1999, Mr. Simmons coupled his interest in the mechanics of Internet communication with his experience in matters of evidentiary privilege to co-author an article for the ABA's Trial magazine examining the use of E-mail for attorney/client communications. "E-mail and the Attorney-Client Privilege," Trial, Feb. 1999, at 20. Subsequently, the ABA issued a model opinion following the same course charted in the article.

Both a member of the American Civil Liberties Union and a past president of the Federalist Society, Mr. Simmons' devotion to the Constitution of the United States is reflected in his track record of tenacious advocacy in constitutional and civil rights litigations. On a local level, he translates lessons learned battling the federal government into tools to be applied in municipal and county matters, including zoning, land use law, riparian or water rights advocacy and even Condominium or Home Owners Association (HOA) governance disputes.

Mr. Simmons is a member of the Maryland and Delaware bars, and is admitted to practice before the U.S. District Court for the District of Maryland, the U.S. District Court for the District of Columbia and the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Seventh Circuit. He has substantial experience in appellate litigation.

Personal Background:

Mr. Simmons was born on November 11, 1970, in Ann Arbor, Michigan. He grew up in Bethesda, Maryland and graduated from Walt Whitman High School in 1989. He has resided in Montgomery County for 30 of the past 33 years. He lives in Gaithersburg with his wife of ten years and their three sons. Mr. Simmons enjoys chess, biking and kayaking. He is also an avid collector of studio ceramics and European and American art pottery.