Matthew J. Berns

Matthew Berns is a litigation associate in the firm’s Washington, DC office.  Mr. Berns also provides firm clients from a variety of industries with pre-litigation advice on matters of administrative law.

Representative Matters

• Successfully representing a state health care program in a federal appeal involving over $100 million in Medicaid payments to federally qualified health centers.  Consejo de Salud de la Comunidad de la Playa de Ponce, Inc. v. González-Feliciano, 695 F.3d 83 (1st Cir. 2012).
• Successfully representing a state health care program in obtaining reconsideration of a disallowance by the Centers for Medicare & Medicaid Services.
• Representing a state health care program in a federal class action involving home- and community-based services.
• Representing pharmaceutical clients challenging regulatory action of the FDA under the Administrative Procedure Act.
• Representing patent holders challenging actions of the Patent and Trademark Office under the Administrative Procedure Act.
• Representing Union Station Redevelopment Corporation in challenging a possessory interest tax imposed on Union Station by the District of Columbia.
• Defending a mining company in a toxic tort case.
• Representing an international corporation in a criminal antitrust investigation.

Previous Experience

• During law school, Mr. Berns served as an intern for Justice Virginia Long of the Supreme Court of New Jersey and for the Family Court division of the Superior Court of the District of Columbia.

Pro Bono

• Representing a coalition of civil rights organizations and religious leaders in ballot initiative matters that resulted in Maryland becoming one of the first states to approve same-sex marriage by popular vote.
• Filed amicus briefs in the Supreme Court and in lower federal courts on behalf of pro bono clients in matters involving sentencing and administrative law.

Memberships and Affiliations

• American Bar Association
• ABA Section of Administrative Law & Regulatory Practice

Publications and Speeches

• "Supreme Court Rules on the Constitutionality of the Affordable Care Act," Covington Advisory (6/29/2012), Co-Author