Imad S. Matini

Imad Matini is a partner in the Business Trial Practice Group in the firm's Washington, D.C. office.

Areas of Practice

Imad is a seasoned first chair litigator with extensive trial and appellate experience who helps clients solve their most difficult legal problems. He has taken numerous cases to trial in state and federal courts across the United States, and also appeared before many state and federal appellate courts as well. 

Imad’s practice focuses on business and healthcare litigations and regulatory compliance. His representations have involved complex, “bet the company” litigations involving healthcare, international law, trade secret, communications, and administrative law issues. He also has ample experience handling internal and government investigations from start to finish. On the regulatory front, Imad advises telecommunications and healthcare companies on compliance issues and proactive measures to ensure compliance with the ever-evolving web of regulatory challenges imposed by state and federal governments.

In addition to his practice, Imad is actively involved in the firm. He currently serves as a Lead of the Diversity and Inclusion Working Group at the Washington, D.C., office, and is a member of the Recruiting Committee and Pro Bono Committee. 

Outside of the firm, Imad is actively engaged in the legal community. He currently serves a co-chair of the Federal Communications Bar’s Judicial Practice Committee and is an instructor for the DC Bar’s annual course on state and federal procedure. He is also an active member of numerous bar associations.

Prior to joining the firm, Imad clerked at the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fourth Circuit as well as at the U.S. District Court for the Northern District of West Virginia. Imad's article, "Distinctions with a Difference," has also been published in the University of Tennessee Law Review.

While in law school, Imad served as Editor-in-Chief of his law review, was a member of the Tax Moot Court team, and worked on behalf of indigent clients as part of his school’s U.S. Supreme Court Clinic.

Experience

• Litigated and first-chaired numerous state and federal trials involving complex commercial and healthcare disputes as well as international entities.
• Litigated and first-chaired domestic arbitrations involving provider-payor and commercial disputes.
• Successfully defended client-executives against defamation claims worth over $15 million.
• Litigated and second-chaired international arbitration held in London, UK, on behalf of global manufacturer.
• Obtained dismissal of multi-million dollar counterclaims against private equity firm, affiliates, and officers.
• Obtained dismissal of federal class action worth over $100 million against healthcare client and prevailed on appeal.
• Represented Korean telecommunications company in federal court, including before the Second Circuit and U.S. Supreme Court.
• Secured asylum status for client’s son and reunited him with his family after 15 years apart.
• Advises clients on global and local compliance with telecommunications and healthcare laws and regulations.

Honors

Gardner Gillespie Environmental Pro Bono Award, 2024

Bob Gerber Pro Bono Award, Sheppard Mullin, 2020

Recommended Lawyer - Telecoms and Broadcast: Regulatory, Legal 500, 2022, 2024

Articles

FCC Law Blog Posts

• "Fifth Circuit Pauses Injunction Restricting Communications Between the Government and Social Media Companies Over Content Removal," July 31, 2023

• "D.C. Circuit Allows FCC To Open 6 GHz Band For Unlicensed Use," January 20, 2022
• "D.C. Circuit Hears Challenge To Federal Communications Commission’s 2018 Restoring Internet Freedom Order," February 4, 2019
• "As The “Net Neutrality” World Turns . . . ." November 7, 2018 
• "Back To The Future: FCC Returns To Light Touch Regulation Of The Internet,"  June 13, 2018
• "Lucia Is Likely To Have Little Impact On Waning FCC Adjudications," July 17, 2018 

Trade Secrets Law Blog

• "FTC reviews non-compete agreements: An Update On The Future Of Restrictive Covenants Following The Biden Administration’s Proposed Curtailment and Safeguarding of Proprietary Information," January 3, 2022

• "The China Pivot: Closing the “Back Door” to Trade Secret and IP Theft," January 15, 2021

Publications

• "Distinctions With A Difference: Why Proper Rule 59(e) Motions Should Not Be Subject To 'Second Or Successive' Habeas Analysis," 84 Tennessee Law Review 1, 2016, available at https://tennesseelawreviewdotcom.files.wordpress.com/2017/07/distinctions-with-a-difference.pdf

Media Mentions

Speaking Engagements

• Speaker, "Handling Substantive & Procedural Motions in the District of Columbia 2023," DC Bar, March 21, 2023
• Moderator, “FCBA CLE: The Judicial Year in Review,” Federal Communications Bar Association, June 22, 2023
• Speaker, "Handling Substantive and Procedural Motions in the District of Columbia," DC Bar, March 9, 2022

Events

Memberships

Member, American Bar Association

Member, Virginia State Bar Association

Member, New York State Bar Association

Member, Bar Association of the District of Columbia

Member, Federal Communications Bar Association

Co-Chair, Judicial Practice Committee, Federal Communications Bar Association

Digital Media