Matthew J. Douglas | People

Matt Douglas is a litigator whose practice focuses on environmental and product liability litigation, including extensive work in the energy, manufacturing, and pharmaceutical sectors. His experience includes environmental, product liability, consumer class actions, commercial disputes, and antitrust matters. His environmental work has included toxic tort litigation, CERCLA litigation and remediation actions, Natural Resource Damages (NRD), Clean Water Act (CWA) enforcement and permitting cases, water contamination matters, including PFAS and other emerging contaminants, and Endangered Species Act work. His product liability work includes the defense of major pharmaceutical companies in product liability mass torts in state and federal court. He was counsel to BP in the Deepwater Horizon matter for its internal investigation and for the defense of NRD and CWA claims. He has served as lead trial counsel in a variety of cases, and has trial experience in Colorado and many other states.

Prior to joining the firm, Matt practiced general civil litigation and criminal defense with an emphasis on trial work.

Focus Areas

Experience

Honeywell, in defending a putative class action seeking property damage and medical monitoring and approximately 50 individual personal injury and other suits related to PFAS chemicals and drinking water in Hoosick Falls, New York. Baker v. Saint-Gobain.
Wolverine World Wide, Inc. in three putative class action lawsuits seeking property damage and medical monitoring and approximately 260 personal injury suits related to PFAS chemicals and drinking water in Western Michigan. Johns v. Wolverine World Wide, Inc. (consolidated); In Re Nylaan Litigation.

Bayer CropScience in a CERCLA enforcement action and in litigation against the State of Oregon for contribution of the State’s fair share of remediation costs at a legacy hazardous waste site.
Honeywell in Steward et. al. v. Honeywell and related cases. This complex litigation relates to alleged radioactive emissions from a uranium conversion facility that allegedly resulted in property damages and health effects within the local community. The actions include a putative property damages class action, multiple personal injury and wrongful death actions, and a suit brought by local government entities.
BP with respect to the Deepwater Horizon Gulf of Mexico oil spill, including as counsel to BP for NRD matters and for its internal investigation of the spill.
Manufacturing company as lead counsel in CERCLA litigation.

Transportation company as lead counsel in defense of Clean Water Act enforcement action.
Oil and gas operators as lead counsel in Clean Water Act enforcement and permitting matters.

AstraZeneca, as national counsel, in Multidistrict Litigation involving proton-pump inhibitors, Prilosec and Nexium.
Major pharmaceutical company as national counsel in defense of nationwide mass tort litigation, including multiple trials.
Major retailer as counsel in consumer fraud class action litigation involving attempts by plaintiffs to obtain nationwide recalls of consumer products, including the defeat of class certification in multiple cases.
Landowner as lead trial counsel in an action opposing a proposed high-voltage transmission line before the Colorado Public Utilities Commission.

Protesters in Denver who were injured by the police during the George Floyd protests, as pro bono trial counsel, resulting in a $14M verdict against the City of Denver.