Matthew Taggart is an experienced litigator who has represented both plaintiffs and defendants in the most complex matters in both trial and appellate courts and before administrative agencies.  His practice centers on complex civil litigation, where he represents clients in lawsuits involving federal and state antitrust statutes, bankruptcy/insolvency issues, partnership and shareholder disputes, consumer fraud, professional liability, real estate, business torts, employment law, and misappropriation of trade secrets.

Mr. Taggart has represented individuals and business organizations ranging from the largest Fortune 500 companies to emerging start-up companies.  His corporate clients have included the nation’s largest retail interests, live entertainment/ticketing companies, talent management firms, “Big Four” accounting firms, national law firms, California and Los Angeles-based technology companies and private equity firms and investors.

Prior to joining Venable, Mr. Taggart was with Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP from 2003 to 2010.

Significant Matters

Legal Malpractice:  Mr. Taggart has successfully defended several national law firms against allegations of malpractice, breach of fiduciary duty and ethical violations across various substantive legal topics, including insolvency, real estate, securities and corporate transactions.  He has obtained plaintiff’s voluntary dismissal of breach of fiduciary duty and punitive damage claims in response to a pending motion for summary judgment.

Accounting Malpractice:  Mr. Taggart defended a “Big Four” accounting firm against dozens of California state court lawsuits alleging professional negligence and fraud in connection with wealthy investors’ participation in tax shelters.

Antitrust:  Mr. Taggart represented a direct action/”opt-out” plaintiff in In re TFT-LCD (Flat Panel) Antitrust Litig., a nationwide consolidated MDL proceeding in the Northern District of California, in which plaintiff alleged a price-fixing conspiracy in violation of Section 1 of the Sherman Antitrust Act and state antitrust law.  Mr. Taggart was also among the team of attorneys representing Ticketmaster Entertainment, Inc. in connection with the DOJ’s “Second Request” and investigation of its $2.5 billion merger with Live Nation Entertainment, Inc.  Mr. Taggart personally managed the document review/e-discovery underpinning Ticketmaster’s response to the Second Request.  Mr. Taggart also represented Ticketmaster in various unfair competition matters involving the primary and secondary ticketing industries, including Ticketmaster v. StubHub/eBay.

Class Actions/Consumer Fraud:  Mr. Taggart represented Best Buy in two class action lawsuits alleging violations of the Consumer Legal Remedies Act, Unfair Competition Law (Section 17200), Magnuson-Moss Act and state warranty statutes, including In Re Sony VAIO Computer Notebook Trackpad Litig., No. 09-cv-2109 BEN (RBB).  He successfully defended ITT Educational Services against claims under Texas’s deceptive trade practices act and false advertising law.

Commercial Lease Disputes:  Mr. Taggart successfully prosecuted a breach of contract case on behalf of a leading national retailer against a commercial landlord in Los Angeles alleging substantial CAM overcharges.  He obtained summary adjudication in the client’s favor enforcing its interpretation of the complex lease agreement.

Employment:  Mr. Taggart has substantial employment and labor experience, and has advised both employers and senior executives on California’s unique wrongful termination statutes and defended so-called Tameny lawsuits and Labor Code/unpaid wages claims.  His published law review comment at U.C. Berkeley School of Law addressed the constitutionality of the Americans with Disabilities Act under the Fourteenth Amendment.  See Title II of the ADA After Garrett:  Defective Abrogation of Sovereign Immunity and Its Remedial Impact, 91 Cal. L. Rev. 827.

Appellate/Constitutional Law:  Mr. Taggart has personally handled both direct appeals and writ petitions in both federal and state court.  Representative matters include:

ITT Educational Services, Inc. v. Arce, 533 F.3d 342 (5th Cir. 2008).  After obtaining a permanent injunction in the Southern District of Texas enjoining former students from breaching confidentiality provisions in arbitration agreements, Mr. Taggart successfully defended judgment in ITT’s favor in Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals.  The case resulted in a unanimous precedential decision affirming the enforceability of bargained-for confidentiality provisions despite post-hoc claims of fraudulent inducement.

Ahmed v. Holder, 569 F.3d 1009 (9th Cir. 2009).  Mr. Taggart served as lead counsel in an important administrative law case holding that where the Board of Immigration Appeals specifically addresses an issue on the merits, that issue is deemed exhausted even though it was not raised in petitioner’s merits brief.  (Cited in Rutter Group Ninth Circuit Practice Guide “2010 Highlights”).  He argued the appeal to the Ninth Circuit and was awarded more than $30,000 for his representation under the Equal Access to Justice Act, over opposition from the DOJ.

Goldman v. KPMG LLP, 173 Cal.App.4th 209 (2009).  Mr. Taggart represented an accounting firm in an important California case involving scope of nonsignatory defendant’s rights to rely upon third-party arbitration agreement to compel plaintiff to arbitrate claims under the doctrine of equitable estoppel.

Activities

Mr. Taggart is a volunteer attorney with the Ninth Circuit Pro Bono Program, and has handled several immigration appeals on behalf of indigent clients.  He successfully completed the Los Angeles County Bar Association’s Trial Advocacy Project (“TAP”), an intensive trial training program enabling lawyers to act as volunteer prosecutors with local law enforcement agencies.  Mr. Taggart is also a qualified mediator and is a member of the LACBA’s Center for Civic Mediation.

He remains active with Boalt Hall, serving as a member of the 2008 Reunion Committee and the 2003 Boalt Hall Campaign Committee.