Matthew E. Digby’s practice concentrates on litigation, US- and Japan-based commercial relations, and international commercial law matters. Matthew advises international and Japan-based corporations concerning legal aspects of importation and distribution of goods in the United States; protection of trademarks, trade secrets and other intellectual property matters; avoiding unfair import and trade practices; antitrust; and manufacturer-dealer relations.

Matthew has successfully enforced trademark rights for a variety of companies based in Japan, Europe and the United States in litigation in the United States District Court in Los Angeles and has been involved in patent, trade secret and other intellectual property litigations throughout the United States.

After graduating from law school, he joined one of the leading Japanese boutique firms in New York and relocated to the firm’s Los Angeles office in the mid-1980s. Matthew remained with the firm after its merger with a large international firm.

Matthew is a member of several professional organizations including the American Bar Association and serves on the Board of Governors of  the Japan America Society of Southern California. In 2006 and 2008, Matthew was recognized as a Southern California Super Lawyer by Law & Politics and Los Angeles magazines.

Representative Experience

• Defending five major Japan-based manufacturing companies and several of their US subsidiaries in federal and state court cases arising out of claims for forced labor by prisoners of war and civilians during World War II; defendants prevailed in all of the cases, which reached the US and California Supreme Courts.
• Defending a Europe-based bank in United States District Court and Ninth Circuit proceedings involving allegations of contempt against the bank for certain transactions conducted outside of the United States.
• Defending a Mexican film director in an action involving rights to the motion picture “Like Water for Chocolate.”
• Defending a luxury-brand cosmetics and clothing manufacturer in employment litigation.
• Representing a subsidiary of one of Japan's largest electronics products manufacturers before New York’s highest court in a dispute with a distributor over goods sold and delivered.
• Defending a Japan-based manufacturing company against charges of theft of trade secrets in a proceeding in the United States District Court in Ohio including defense of the president and several executives of the company at Japanese-language depositions in Japan; claims exceeded US$500 million.
• Defending a Japan-based manufacturer of high-tech machine tools in a patent infringement action before the US International Trade Commission in Washington DC including defense of the company president and several executives at Japanese-language depositions in Japan.
• Defending a Taiwan-based manufacturer of personal computers in a patent infringement action before the US International Trade Commission in Washington DC.