Joshua Matz

Practice Areas

Appellate Litigation; Commercial Litigation; Congressional Investigations; Education; Employment, Discrimination and Sexual Misconduct; Investigations and Crisis Management; Public Interest Litigation

Career

Joshua Matz works closely with clients as a strategic counselor, trial and appellate litigator, and trusted advisor in responding to governmental investigations. He has successfully litigated high-stakes matters at every level of the state and federal courts—and has supported clients in responding to a wide range of congressional, state attorney general, and federal agency inquiries. He is also experienced at designing risk management programs and diving into crisis response. Across his work, Joshua draws on his background as a law clerk to Justice Anthony Kennedy, his service on the staff of the House Judiciary Committee, and his proficiency in constitutional law (he has co-authored two books with Harvard Law Professor Larry Tribe). Joshua’s clients include philanthropies, universities, nonprofits, Fortune 500 companies, startups, cities, states, individuals, and current and former public officials. And in recent years, Joshua’s lawyering has been recognized by Chambers, Forbes, Benchmark Litigation, Business Insider, Bloomberg Law, and The National Law Journal.

Joshua maintains an active litigation and appellate practice. He is most often consulted when cases involve complex constitutional or statutory issues, or where clients seek the involvement of appellate-experienced counsel in trial strategy. He has litigated a diverse set of commercial proceedings, ranging from defamation, contract, and trade secrets disputes to labor, consumer protection, and discrimination matters. He has worked with major corporations and civil rights groups to shape litigation strategies and structure cutting-edge lawsuits. And he has successfully litigated high stakes matters at the U.S. Supreme Court (including emergency applications).

Joshua is particularly experienced at supporting institutions of higher education. He has represented Brown University, Columbia University, and New York University in litigation concerning compliance with anti-discrimination law. He has worked with university-affiliated healthcare systems to address evolving federal requirements. And he has advised several universities on issues including Title VI, Title IX, free speech, religious liberty, federal grantmaking, the False Claims Act, executive orders, and government investigations.

Joshua’s practice also features a strong focus on supporting nonprofits, private foundations, public charities, and family offices. He works with some of the nation’s largest advocacy and grantmaking entities—and has represented clients in responding to lawsuits, grand jury subpoenas, civil subpoenas, civil investigative demands, congressional inquiries, dealings with law enforcement, and many other legal issues. In addition, Joshua is frequently retained to advise on compliance, resilience, and risk management, as well as the implications of presidential memoranda, executive orders, and shifting governmental policies and enforcement strategies. And Joshua is skilled at working with organizational stakeholders, government affairs firms, and communications professionals in managing crisis response needs. In all such work, Joshua seeks to help clients achieve their programmatic objectives and uphold their values while navigating the legal landscape.

Joshua has brought many of these skills to bear in the field of democracy and elections. In 2020, he successfully represented Pennsylvania in defending the certification of its presidential election results. In 2021, Joshua secured the dismissal of a case against a nonprofit—and subsequently secured sanctions—where plaintiffs asserted claims related to the 2020 election. In 2022, he successfully represented the Governors of Wisconsin and Pennsylvania in defending their states’ congressional districting maps against challenges at the U.S. Supreme Court. And in the 2024 cycle, he represented several nonprofits and states in high-impact election matters. Alongside these litigations, Joshua has represented democracy-focused clients in state and congressional investigations. He has also provided state-by-state compliance advice to democracy-oriented nonprofits, worked with clients to ensure their preparedness for election cycle challenges, and advised on the proper administration and certification of state and federal elections.

In that same vein, Joshua is frequently retained for civil rights disputes. These matters have encompassed LGBTQ rights, religious liberty, free speech, privacy, racial justice, prisoners’ rights, firearm regulation, criminal defendants’ rights, and the separation of powers. While many of these representations have involved litigation—or the filing of amicus briefs—Joshua also works on many civil rights issues in counseling settings.

Alongside his litigation experience, Joshua has written for diverse audiences about legal issues. His writings have appeared in The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, Politico, The Harvard Law Review Forum, The University of Chicago Law Review, Just Security, The Atlantic, and WIRED. He has been invited to speak at Harvard Law School, the 92nd Street Y, the National Constitution Center, and Politics & Prose. Joshua also has been appointed as an Adjunct Professor at Georgetown Law School, where he co-teaches “Constitutional Litigation and the Executive Branch.” Joshua has served on nonprofit boards and twice served on the staff of the House Judiciary Committee.

Joshua received his B.A., magna cum laude, from the University of Pennsylvania; his MSt, with distinction, from Oxford University; and his J.D., magna cum laude, from Harvard Law School. In law school, Joshua interned at the Public Citizen Litigation Group and the Federal Defenders of New York. He also served as Articles & Book Reviews Chair of the Harvard Law Review. Following law school, Joshua clerked for the Honorable J. Paul Oetken of the Southern District of New York, the Honorable Stephen Reinhardt of the Ninth Circuit, and Justice Anthony Kennedy of the U.S. Supreme Court.