Matt prides himself on being an energetic and business-minded real estate and finance attorney.

Matt chairs the firm's Real Estate Finance Practice Group while also maintaining an active real estate practice.  He takes a practical, business-minded approach to the practice of law by putting the business goals of his clients first while also protecting them against the legal risks they face.  A thoughtful, energetic and effective service provider, Matt is a careful lawyer who zealously represents his clients while also being well-respected by both his clients and the other parties in transactions.

Matt has a balanced range of experience, which includes representing Fortune 500 lenders and national real estate investors in the hospitality and industrial warehouse industries, regional and community banks, and owners, investors and developers in retail and multi-family real estate and financing transactions. He represents construction and permanent mortgage lenders in the negotiation and documentation of new and restructured commercial loans and counsels other asset-based secured lenders on issues related to the Uniform Commercial Code. He also has represented real estate investors and lending institutions in complex transactions involving real estate portfolios with multiple properties.

Matt also has represented landlords and tenants in the drafting and negotiation of commercial leases and has significant experience representing owners of commercial property in matters involving easements, restrictive covenants, zoning issues, eminent domain and utility construction.

As a former litigator and trial lawyer, Matt understands how courts read contracts and assess claims, and therefore how to protect his clients against potential future adverse rulings through careful and precise contract drafting and thorough due diligence investigation.

Matt was named to the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch lists in 2021-2026 and the Super Lawyers: Rising Stars list in 2023-2024.

A former journalist, Matt has also won several awards for outstanding news reporting.

Education

The Ohio State University Moritz College of Law (J.D., magna cum laude), 2014; The Order of the Coif; Note Editor, Ohio State Law Journal, 2013–2014

Malone University (B.A. in Communication Arts, summa cum laude), 2008

Distinctions

Ones to Watch, The Best Lawyers in America® – Litigation - Construction (2021–2026)

Listed, Columbus CEO’s Top Lawyers – Banking & Financial Service Law (2025)

Rising Star, Super Lawyers®, part of Thomson Reuters® – Ohio, Real Estate (2023–2024)

Professional Activities

• Columbus Bar Association Real Property Law Institute Planning Committee, 2023-present
• Nationwide Children's Hospital Foundation Development Board, 2023-present
• Leadership Team, Vista Community Church
• Member, Brookside Golf & Country Club
• Member, Columbus Bar Association
• Member, Ohio State Bar Association

News

Publications

Additional Items

• Speaker, Strafford Publications CLE Webinar, "Drafting and Negotiating Real Estate Loan Documents," April 2023
• Speaker, Strafford Publications CLE Webinar, "Revolving Lines of Credit for Multiple Property Portfolios," November 2022
• Speaker, Banking Client Seminar, "E-Contracting: Execution, Enforceability and Security Interests," October 2022
• Moderator, Real Property Law Institute CLE on Commercial Lending at Columbus Bar Association, April 2022
• Speaker, Advanced Commercial Real Estate, Ohio State Bar Association, "Issues in Commercial Lending," October 2021