Matthew Ray
Education
B.B.A, Texas Tech University, 1988, cum laude
J.D., Southern Methodist University, 1993, magna cum laude
Judicial Clerkship, Justice Craig Enoch, Texas Supreme Court, 1993-1994
Admissions
U.S. District Courts for the Northern, Southern, Eastern and Western Districts of Texas
U.S. District Courts of Colorado
U.S. Courts of Appeal for the Fifth, Eighth and Tenth Circuits
Matt is an accomplished trial lawyer on both sides of the docket. He has helped clients ranging from large public companies to executives achieve significant victories in high stakes commercial and employment litigation. His talents and track record have earned him many awards, including being recognized as one of the Top 100 lawyers in Texas by Super Lawyers and being listed in the Best Lawyers in America®, by BL Rankings, LLC.
In addition to handling litigation and counseling involving all aspects of the employment relationship, Matt routinely litigates significant and complex commercial cases in state and federal courts around the country. He also has extensive experience with arbitration and has successfully arbitrated both commercial and employment cases before single and multiple arbitrator panels.
Before attending law school, Matt was an accountant with a Big 4 accounting firm. After graduating magna cum laude from SMU’s Dedman School of Law in 1993, Matt clerked for one year as a briefing attorney for Judge Craig Enoch on the Texas Supreme Court. In addition to co-authoring chapters on employment litigation and law in Professor William Dorsaneo’s Texas Litigation Guide, Matt has taught as an adjunct professor at SMU’s Dedman School of Law.
Representative Experience
Successfully represented a publicly traded company in a contentious dispute in multiple forums involving alleged theft of trade secrets and violations of non-compete agreements
Obtained defense jury verdict in federal court in case alleging age discrimination and retaliation
Obtained injunctive relief in an action alleging violations of non-compete agreements by two former employees of a large medical devices company
Obtained injunctive relief in an action alleging former president of sourcing company violated non-compete covenants
Represented a multinational technology and consulting corporation in a successful defense of nationwide FLSA action
Obtained take-nothing judgments in arbitrations against international tire manufacturer and retailer brought in separate actions by former employees alleging unlawful terminations
Obtained over $800,000 in sanctions against a former CEO and COO for conspiring to use fabricated evidence to pursue a lawsuit against client
Part of a team that obtained an injunction preventing ex-partners from unfairly competing with the client — including soliciting employees and violating a 5-year non-compete agreement ancillary to the sale of partnership interests
Won an injunction to compel a former employee to return misappropriated confidential information and to enjoin unfair competition by multiple former employees who left en masse to start a competing division against the international construction company
Part of the team that defeated class certification in a case filed by former employees of international semiconductor and computer technology company who alleged breach of contract with respect to compensation
Part of a trial team obtaining a $50+ million judgment in breach of contract case
Represented senior creditors of iHeart Media in a challenge to investment bankers in Chapter 11 case; obtained approximately $6 million reduction in fees
Awards and Recognition
Best Lawyers, D Magazine, 2011–2019, 2021-2022
Texas Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2013–2021
Top 100 Texas Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2014–2019
Top 100 Dallas/Fort Worth Super Lawyers, Thomson Reuters, 2014–2018
The Best Lawyers in America®, by BL Rankings, LLC, 2018–2022 editions
Publications and Speeches
“From Guiding to Enforcing: DOL Drops Opinion Letters” Law 360, April 2010
“Preparing for Increased Wage and Hour Litigation and DOL Enforcement: A Primer for Texas Employers.” April 2010
“Reductions in Force, the ADEA and the WARN ACT: Tips for Avoiding Pitfalls.” Co-author, March 2009
“Defending Lawsuits: An Inevitable Part of Doing Business.” Dallas Bar Journal, 2009
“Employer-Employee Relations, Chapter 203.” Co-author, Texas Litigation Guide, 2009
“Employment Litigation, Chapter 203A.” Co-author, Texas Litigation Guide, 2009
Speaker – AT&T In-house Counsel, “Trade Secrets: Recent Developments and Strategies,” October 17, 2013
Speaker – Dallas Human Resources Management Association, “Trade Secrets and Confidential Information, A Human Resources Guide to Best Practices,” September 10, 2013
Speaker – Dallas Human Resources Management Association, “Preemployment Agreements, Legal Trends and Practical Tips,” November 13, 2012
Speaker – “Unionization in Texas and Beyond – Coming to a Company Near You,” April 2012
Speaker – Dallas-Fort Worth Ethics and Compliance Roundtable, “Compliance Issues with Social Media,” November 2011
Speaker – Jones Day Dallas MCLE University, “Twitterpation: Social Media in the Workplace,” October 2011
Panelist – Dallas Human Resource Management Association, “Legislative Roundtable Panel,” April 2011
Speaker – CLE Teleconference & Webinar, “FLSA Litigation and Enforcement: Latest Challenges,” December 2010
Speaker – 2009-2010 Federal Legislative Regulatory Briefing, November 2009
Speaker – Jones Day Dallas MCLE University, “Current Ethics Issues for In-House Counsel,” November 2009
Speaker – State Bar of Texas 13th Annual Conference and Retreat, Austin, Texas, “Reductions in Force the ADEA and the WARN Act: Tips for Avoiding the Pitfalls,” March 2009
Speaker – Dallas Business Journal Conference, “China: An Evolving Battlefield in the War for Talent,” October 2008
Speaker – American Electronics Association, Dallas, Texas, “Independent Contractors…Employees or Not?” April 2000
