Matthew A. Slater, Esq.

Senior Associate Attorney

Matthew Slater is a senior associate with Gradstein & Marzano. Prior to joining the firm, Mr. Slater was general counsel for the wireless telecommunications company Ring Plus, Inc., and an associate at the boutique civil litigation firm Lee & Kaufman, LLP. He has extensive experience in many areas of litigation, particularly intellectual property, and has participated in several patent infringement lawsuits against major corporations. He has also worked on software and patent licensing transactions.

Mr. Slater is a 2008 graduate of the University of Southern California School of Law, where he was a member of the Intellectual Property & Technology Law Clinic. Before going to law school, Mr. Slater taught English as a foreign language in Japan, Brazil and Saudi Arabia. He speaks fluent Spanish and Portuguese, intermediate Japanese, and beginning-level Arabic.

Significant Matters:

• Litigation on behalf of choreographer Wade Robson and James Safechuck for childhood sexual abuse claims against companies affiliated with Michael Jackson, MJJ Productions and MJJ Ventures
• Litigation on behalf of iconic music producer Quincy Jones against MJJ Productions and Sony for royalties in connection with recordings he produced on the Thriller and Bad albums
• Litigation on behalf of Del Records and Del Entertainment for breaches of artist recording and management agreements
• Litigation involving breach of contract and other claims concerning the ownership of music royalties in connection with “Sly Stone” and Gerald Goldstein, and their related entities
• Won motion for summary judgment on behalf of renowned sound equipment company Todd Soundelux in action for breach of commercial lease
• Participated in a number of patent infringement lawsuits on behalf of Ring Plus, Inc., including two against national wireless carriers (AT&T and Preferred Voice, Inc.) in the Eastern District of Texas and the Central District of California. Assisted in drafting appeal to the Federal Circuit in AT&T case, resulting in reversal of finding of patent’s unenforceability. Conducted settlement negotiations and resolved case against Preferred Voice, Inc. on highly favorable terms.
• Participated in negotiations with T-Mobile, Verizon, and Sprint to launch RingPlus as a Mobile Virtual Network Operator (MVNO) and to license RingPlus’s patent portfolio. Assisted in drafting Private Label Services Agreement with Sprint.

Education:

JD, University of Southern California Gould School of Law (2008)
Interdisciplinary Law Journal; Intellectual Property and Technology Law Clinic

MA, San Francisco State University (1998)

BA, University of California, Santa Barbara (1993)
Cum Laude

Bar Admissions:

State Bar of California
U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit