MATTHEW K. WEGNER

Matt Wegner is a first-chair trial and appellate lawyer who has spent more than two decades litigating complex business and intellectual property disputes in state and federal courts, arbitration, and on appeal. Before co-founding Brown Wegner LLP, Matt practiced for seven years at international law firms, where he built a practice centered on sophisticated commercial, intellectual property, and antitrust matters. He is a co-author of the Rutter Guides on California Civil Trials and Evidence and California Federal Civil Trials and Evidence, the leading treatises on state and federal trial practice in California, published by Thomson Reuters. In law school, he served as Editor-in-Chief of the Minnesota Law Review.

Matt has been named a Super Lawyer every year since 2014, following ten consecutive years on the Rising Stars list beginning in 2004, a track record spanning more than two decades of peer recognition. He has been named to the Top 50 Lawyers in Orange County five times by Los Angeles Magazine, including the 2026 list. He is a Fellow of the Litigation Counsel of America and serves on the Board of Directors of the Federal Bar Association, Orange County Chapter.

Matt co-founded Brown Wegner LLP to build a litigation practice where clients receive the caliber of representation typically associated with the largest firms, delivered with the focus and accountability of a smaller one.

Representation Highlights

Trade secret and breach of contract, technology sector — Represented a software company in a multi-claim dispute involving trade secret misappropriation and breach of contract, securing a favorable resolution that protected the client’s core intellectual property.

Antitrust defense, distribution industry — Represented a regional distributor in a federal antitrust matter involving allegations of price-fixing and unfair competition; obtained early resolution on terms favorable to the client.

Class action defense, employment law — Defended a business client against class-wide employment claims in federal court; successfully opposed class certification, resolving the matter before trial.

Business dissolution dispute — Represented a founding partner in a complex multi-party business dissolution involving claims of breach of fiduciary duty, fraud, and misappropriation of company assets.

Selected Speaking Engagements

First Steps When Your Client’s Trade Secrets Are Misappropriated, Complex Commercial Litigation Institute, Litigation Counsel of America, November 2015

Tackling Difficult Depositions: Techniques for Effectively Deposing Difficult Witnesses and Dealing With Obstructive Counsel, Orange County Bar Association, Young Lawyers Division, September 2015

Introduction to Business Litigation and Forensic Testimony, Chapman University Argyros School of Business and Economics, guest lecturer, November 2016

Education

University of Minnesota Law School

Cum Laude

• J.D., 2002
• Editor-in-Chief, Minnesota Law Review

University of California, San Diego

• B.A. Political Science, Departmental Honors, 1999
• Varsity Crew

Admissions

• All state trial and appellate courts in California
• All United States District Courts in California
• Ninth and Federal Circuit Courts of Appeals
• Supreme Court of the United States
• Northern District of Texas

Contact

(949) 705-0080
mwegner@brownwegner.com
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