Lawyers / Professionals

 
Matthew C. Kane       
Partner
1800 Century Park East
8th Floor
Los Angeles, California 90067-1501
T: 310.315.8295
F: 310.956.3195
mkane@mcguirewoods.com
 

Mr. Kane is a member of McGuireWoods' Labor & Employment and Complex Commercial Litigation Departments. In his multidisciplinary practice, he represents businesses in preventing, litigating, and resolving employment-related claims, wage and hour class actions, misappropriation of trade secrets and non-competition agreement claims, labor-management relations issues, unfair competition and false advertising consumer class actions, and general commercial litigation.

He provides candid and pragmatic counsel and representation to business clients ranging from small organizations to Fortune 500 companies. His extensive experience includes serving as a lawyer in private practice, as in-house counsel for a Fortune 50 company, and as a mediator. He currently serves as co-lead national wage and hour class action defense counsel for one of the largest financial institutions in the United States.


Representative Matters
  • Labor & Employment Litigation & Related Matters Experience
    • Defense of employee claims asserting wrongful termination, breach of contract, and unlawful harassment, discrimination and retaliation.
    • Litigation of misappropriation of trade secrets, unfair competition, and breach of non-compete and non-solicitation agreement claims, including applications for provisional injunctive relief.
    • Drafting and enforcement of mandatory binding arbitration agreements.
    • Drafting and advice on employment-related policies, employee handbooks, and employment contracts.
    • Advice and counsel regarding employee discipline issues and reductions in force.
    • Training of supervisors and employees on prevention of unlawful employment practices, including sexual harassment, discrimination, and retaliation.
    • Advice and training regarding union avoidance and during union organizing campaigns.
    • Representation of companies in connection with union relationships, including collective bargaining, grievance arbitrations, strike and boycott activities, unfair labor practice proceedings, and related litigation.
    • Managing in-house labor counsel during 2003-2004 southern California supermarket workers strike and lockout which lasted 141 days, including defense of RICO, COBRA, LMRA, Cal-WARN Act, antitrust, and wage and hour litigation brought or sponsored by UFCW Locals, and prosecution of litigation against unions to enjoin unlawful picketing activities.
  • Wage & Hour Class Action / Collective Action Experience
    • Class actions asserting misclassification and off-the-clock overtime and minimum wage violations, meal and rest periods violations, and related claims.
    • Class actions asserting employee business expense reimbursement violations and related claims.
    • Class actions challenging the terms and administration of bonus compensation plans.
    • Hybrid nationwide FLSA collective actions and state law class actions asserting misclassification and off-the-clock overtime and minimum wage violations and related claims.
    • Class action asserting overtime and related claims by outsourced, subcontracted janitorial workers.
    • Class action brought by members of certified settlement classes in two earlier misclassification overtime class actions asserting discrimination, retaliation, and unfair business practices claims against employer for later settling on more favorable terms with the opt-out class members in both earlier-settled class actions.
    • Representative action for alleged wage and hour violations resulting from employment of locked out employees during labor dispute.
  • Consumer Class Action / Representative Action Experience
    • Nationwide class action asserting unlawful scheme of skimming money from clients' bank accounts by payroll services provider.
    • Nationwide class action asserting false advertising and unfair competition claims related to rental of self-storage facilities and sales of ancillary goods and services.
    • More than 20 coordinated class actions asserting false advertising and unfair competition claims related to failed retail sales promotion program.
    • Seven consolidated class actions asserting false advertising and unfair competition claims related to the alleged failure to disclose the presence of artificial coloring in farm-raised salmon.
    • Representative action asserting unfair competition claims related to the sale of products containing Ginseng.
    • Representative actions asserting unfair competition claims related to the collection of sales tax on juice products and vegetable fertilizer products.
    • Representative action asserting false advertising and unfair competition claims related to the sale of pesticide residue-free produce.
    • Representative action asserting unfair competition claims related to multiple-item price advertising.
    • Public prosecutor representative action for false advertising and unfair competition related to comparative price advertising.
    • Representative action asserting unfair competition claims related to the labeling of butter and margarine products.
    • Class/representative action asserting false advertising and unfair competition claims related to reference price advertising.
    • Representative and public prosecutor actions asserting unfair competition claims related to the alleged sale of products containing toluene to minors.
    • Class/representative and public prosecutor actions for alleged violations of California Prop. 65 related to mercury levels in fish and nasal spray products, and lead levels in wine vinegar products.
  • Representative Trial Court, Arbitration & Appellate Decisions
    • Jeanne Hilary, et al. vs. Public Storage, Incorporated, Los Angeles County Superior Court (July 2009) (defense motion for summary judgment and for no-merit determination granted in nationwide consumer class action asserting false advertising claims under California's Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and Consumers Legal Remedies Act)
    • Steve Gerich vs. Kellogg Company, et al., U.S. District Court, C.D. California (July 2009) (plaintiff's motion to remand wrongful termination and unlawful discrimination case to state court denied and individual co-defendant dismissed on ground that individual co-defendant was fraudulently joined to defeat diversity of citizenship jurisdiction)
    • Thomas L. Kelley & Associates, Inc., et al. vs. BSN Medical, Inc., U.S. District Court, C.D. California (June 2009) (defense motion for summary judgment granted on claims for violation of California Independent Wholesale Sales Representatives Contractual Relations Act of 1990, breach of oral contract, and breach of fiduciary duty)
    • Ironforge.com, et al. vs. Paychex, Inc., U.S. District Court, C.D. California (May 2009) (defense motion to transfer venue to the Western District of New York granted in nationwide consumer class action asserting claims for fraud and deceit, unjust enrichment and restitution, breach of fiduciary duty, conversion, breach of contract, violation of the federal Electronic Funds Transfer Act, and violations of California's Unfair Competition Law, False Advertising Law, and Consumers Legal Remedies Act)
    • Armando Perez vs. AoiTechno, Inc., et al., Orange County Superior Court (April 2009) (motion to compel arbitration granted in wrongful termination and unlawful discrimination lawsuit in favor of defendant which was not a party to the plaintiff's arbitration agreement but alleged to be the plaintiff's joint employer)
    • Ed Hurtado, et al. vs. McLane Foodservice, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court, C.D. California (March 2009) (plaintiffs' motion for class certification defeated in wage and hour class action alleging claims for unpaid wages, meal and rest break violations, and related claims under California Labor Code)
    • Everett Seymour, et al. vs. McLane Company, Inc., et al., U.S. District Court, C.D. California (March 2009) (plaintiffs' motion for class certification defeated in wage and hour class action alleging claims for fraud, unpaid wages, meal and rest break violations, and related claims under California Labor Code)
    • IBEW Local 1710 vs. Siemens Energy & Automation, Inc., Labor Arbitration (October 2008) (arbitration decision and award denying grievance on behalf of employee terminated for violations of tardiness and attendance policy after employer's unilateral change in interpretation and enforcement of policy)
    • Teamsters Local 848 vs. Coca-Cola Bottling Company of Southern California, Labor Arbitration (September 2008) (arbitration decision and award denying grievance on behalf of employee terminated for theft of company funds)
    • John Doe vs. Major Pharmaceutical Company, Ventura County Superior Court (April 2008) (motion to compel arbitration granted in wrongful termination and whistleblower retaliation lawsuit, almost two years after action was commenced and significant trial court and appellate proceedings, finding that all arbitrability issues must be decided by an arbitrator and not by the court under the Federal Arbitration Act)
    • Farm Raised Salmon Cases, 42 Cal.4th 1077 (2008) (federal preemption of state law consumer food labeling claims) (managing in-house counsel)
    • Prachasaisoradej vs. Ralphs Grocery Company, 2008 WL 344218 (Cal.App. 2 Dist.) (affirming $275,000 attorneys' fees award against plaintiff who brought unsuccessful class action challenging legality of profit-based bonus plans) (managing in-house counsel)
    • Prachasaisoradej vs. Ralphs Grocery Company, 42 Cal.4th 217 (2007) (profit-based bonus plans) (managing in-house counsel and co-counsel of record during briefing)
    • Gober vs. Ralphs Grocery Company, 137 Cal.App.4th 204 (2006) (constitutional due process limits on punitive damages awards) (managing in-house counsel)
    • Goldstein vs. Ralphs Grocery Company, 122 Cal.App.4th 229 (2004) (anti-SLAPP motion) (managing in-house counsel)
    • Omar vs. Ralphs Grocery Company, 118 Cal.App.4th 955 (2004) (employment arbitration agreements) (managing in-house counsel)
    • Ralphs Grocery Company vs. Superior Court, 112 Cal.App.4th 1090 (2004) (profit-based bonus plans) (managing in-house counsel and co-counsel of record)
    • Ralphs Grocery Company vs. California Dept. of Food & Agriculture, 110 Cal.App.4th 694 (2003) (weights and measures compliance) (managing in-house counsel)

Practices & Industries
Previous Experience
  • Shareholder, Strategic Counsel, P.C., Los Angeles, California, 2005-2006
  • Senior Attorney, The Kroger Co., Compton, California, 2000-2005
  • Litigation Associate, Zimmerman, Rosenfeld, Gersh & Leeds LLP, Beverly Hills, California, 1996-2000
  • Litigation Associate and Law Clerk, Anderson, Krehbiel, McCreary & Bryan, APLC, Westlake Village, California, 1993-1996
  • Judicial Law Clerk Extern, Hon. Carolyn Turchin, U.S. District Court, Los Angeles, California, 1992

Publications
Speaking Engagements
  • "California Employment Law Developments: 2008 Year-end Roundup and a Look Ahead to 2009," McGuireWoods Webinar, December 11, 2008
  • "California Employment Law Developments: 2007 Year-end Roundup and a Look Ahead to 2008," McGuireWoods Webinar, November 15, 2007
  • "Managing Employee Meal & Rest Breaks After the California Supreme Court's Decision in Murphy v. Kenneth Cole Productions," Bureau of National Affairs (BNA) HR Webinar, 2007
  • "Strategies To Solve Your Most Complex FMLA Challenges," Council On Education In Management, 2007
  • "Employment Law & ADA Accessibility Litigation Developments," California Retailers Association Public Affairs Conference, 2006
  • "Current Trends in Employment Law - Profit-Based Bonus Plans and Mandatory Employment Arbitration in California," University of Southern California Orange County Business Forum, 2005
  • "Ethical Missteps - Corporate Counsel Offer Advice on Responding to Employee Complaints," Corporate Legal Times Roundtable, 2004

Professional Affiliations
  • California State Bar (Member, Litigation, Labor & Employment, and Antitrust & Unfair Competition Sections)
  • Los Angeles County Bar Association (Member, Litigation and Labor & Employment Sections)
  • District of Columbia Bar
  • Mediator, Los Angeles County Superior Court ADR Neutral Panel, 2005-2007
  • Attorney Settlement Officer, U.S. District Court, Central District of California, 2005-2007
  • ProVisors
 

EDUCATION

Pepperdine University School of Law, Malibu, California, J.D., 1994

  • Recipient, American Jurisprudence Award for Constitutional Law

Boston University School of Management, Boston, Massachusetts, B.S.B.A., 1991

 
 

ADMITTED

California 1994

District of Columbia 2006

U.S. Court of Appeals for the 9th Circuit 1995

U.S. District Court for the Central District of California 1994

U.S. District Court for the Southern District of California 1995

U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California 1999

U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of California 2005

 

PLACE OF BIRTH

Fall River, Massachusetts