Matthew Kleifield is a partner in the Phoenix office of Lewis Brisbois and a member of the Products Liability Practice. He focuses his practice in the following areas:

• Products Liability with a particular emphasis on tire defect litigation and heavy equipment and machinery
• Catastrophic loss litigation involving claims of brain injury, spinal cord injury, permanent disability and death
• Rancher and Farmer liability including claims related to land use, equipment and livestock
• Trucking liability
• Personal injury defense arising from all risks
• Insurance Bad Faith and Breach of Contract

Matt has tried in excess of 75 jury trials in State and Federal Courts throughout Arizona as sole or lead counsel, involving a broad spectrum of claims including catastrophic injury and/or economic loss; death; brain, spinal cord and other profound, permanent or debilitating injuries; product defect involving a broad spectrum of products including motor vehicle components; large equipment and machinery; appliances and other consumer products.

Matt’s litigation experience has required that he work regularly in developing, presenting and cross examining expert witnesses in the fields of accident reconstruction (automotive accidents and machinery failures); vehicle dynamics; trucking and motorcycle safety, training and practices; product warnings; biomechanics; air bags and seat belts design and function; tire design, construction and forensic failure analysis; materials sciences; metallurgy; large machinery and equipment design, construction and failure analysis; work place safety; toxicology; neurology; neurosurgery; orthopedic surgery; physiatry; psychiatry; psychology; neuropsychology; pain management; life care planning; economics; forensic accounting; business analysis and a broad spectrum of design and construction disciplines.

Matt started his practice with a large Phoenix law firm upon graduating from law school in 1987. He became an equity shareholder with that firm in 1992 and then joined a boutique litigation firm as an equity shareholder in 1996 where he remained until joining Lewis Brisbois Bisgaard and Smith in 2011.

Judge Pro Tempore, Maricopa County Superior Court, 2004-2010

Admissions

• State Bar Admissions
  • Arizona
• State Supreme Courts
  • Arizona Supreme Court
• United States District Courts
  • United States District Court for the District of Arizona
  • United States District Court for the Southern District of Texas
• United States Courts of Appeals
  • United States Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit

Admissions

Arizona

United States District Court of Southern Texas

The Arizona Supreme Court

The United States Court of Appeals, 9th Circuit

The United States District Court for the District of Arizona

Associations

• International Association of Defense Counsel
• Defense Research Institute
• Association of Defense Trial Attorneys
• American Board of Trial Advocates (ABOTA)
• Trial Attorneys of America
• Litigation Counsel of America
• Arizona’s Finest Lawyers
• State Bar of Arizona
• Maricopa County Bar Association
• Fiesta Bowl Committee
• Youth Football Coach (AYF and NYS)

Awards & Honors

• Member of Phi Gamma Delta (FIJI)
• Member of Phi Alpha Delta and Law Mens Association
• Arizona State Bar Certified Specialist - Injury and Wrongful Death Litigation, 1993-Present
• Southwest Super Lawyers (Product Liability Defense), 2008- Present
• Southwest Super Lawyers (Product Liability Defense) Top 50, 2011
• University of Arizona College of Law William T. Birmingham Award for Outstanding Trial Advocate, 1987

Education

University of Arizona College of Law

Juris Doctor, cum laude, 1987

University of Arizona

Bachelor of Science in Business Administration (Finance and Marketing), 1984