Johanna L. Matloff

Practice Areas

• Complex Tort Defense
• Professional Liability
• Product Liability
• Employment Litigation / Counseling
• Insurance Litigation

Industries

• Insurance
• Healthcare
• Staffing and Recruiting
• Manufacturing
• Cannabis

Education

• Suffolk University Law School, J.D. magna cum laude (2002)
• The University of Pennsylvania, B.A. magna cum laude (1998)

Court Admissions

• Supreme Judicial Court of Massachusetts, 2002
• United States District Court for the District of Massachusetts, 2003
• United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit, 2004

Recognition

• Johanna was selected as a “Rising Star” by Law & Politics and the publishers of Boston Magazine for each year in which she was eligible since 2005. This designation is reserved for attorneys under the age of forty and with less than ten years of experience practicing law.

Representative Matters

• Non-Profit Counseling
  • Counsel non-profits on responding to, investigating, and defending workplace harassment and discrimination claims. Update and revise employee handbooks, policies and procedures. Develop, implement, and advise board on conflict of interest policy. Provide advice and counsel to board on insurance, fiduciary duties, budgeting, litigation, and oversight of organization.

• ERISA/Employee Benefits
  • Obtained summary judgment for insurer based on plan participant’s failure to file his cause of action for miscalculated ERISA plan benefits more than six years after he knew or should have known of the insurer’s clear repudiation of his claimed entitlement to a greater amount of benefits. Drafted successful appellee brief on plaintiff’s appeal to the United States Court of Appeals for the First Circuit. Riley v. Metropolitan Life Insurance Co., 744 F.3d 241 (1st Cir. 2014).
  • Obtained summary judgment for insurers upholding decisions of claim fiduciaries under employee welfare benefit plans. See Parnagian v. MetLife Disability Ins. Co., 2017 WL 4366968 (D. Mass., Sept. 29, 2017) (upholding denial of benefits based on lack of objectively verifiable job limitations allegedly caused by condition that itself was not objectively verifiable); Sorensen v. Metropolitan Life Ins. Co., 2009 WL 901864 (D. Mass. Mar. 31, 2009) (applying favorable arbitrary and capricious standard of review based on functional analysis of defendant’s role as plan fiduciary); Keiffer v. Shaw Group Inc. Employee Welfare Plan, 2007 WL 3232549 (D.Mass.) (applying arbitrary and capricious standard of review).

• Insurance Litigation
  • Obtained summary judgment on behalf of insured seeking declaratory judgment and damages arising from insurer’s refusal to provide a defense to insured for claims made against insured in underlying patent infringement and product disparagement lawsuit. The favorable decision ultimately led to a $900,000 settlement in favor of the client.
  • Defended financial services company against claims brought by customer alleging that the broker stole client funds by fraudulently cashing checks made payable to customer, constituting withdrawals from customer’s annuities with financial services company. Conducted depositions of the plaintiff and accountant and successfully settled case at mediation.
  • Obtained favorable consent agreement with the Board of Registration in Medicine on behalf of medical provider accused of violating the Health Insurance Portability and Accountability Act of 1996 by accessing the charts of two patients suspected of wrongdoing during an emergency lock down.

• Complex Tort Defense
  • Represented technical services company in action brought by utility lineman who came into contact with primary power wires while stringing cable, resulting in catastrophic personal injuries. Critically deposed over thirty witnesses to elicit facts favorable to the company’s defense. Successfully opposed co-defendant utility’s summary judgment motion seeking contractual indemnification from the company. Favorable deposition testimony and summary judgment ruling led to a favorable settlement for the company.
  • Obtained defense jury verdict on negligence claim brought by subrogated insurer against an insulation company in the Norfolk Superior Court. Conducted depositions of key witnesses during discovery and presented and cross-examined witnesses at trial. Successfully drafted petition for interlocutory appeal pursuant to G. L. c. 231, s. 118 and obtained relief reversing trial court’s order precluding designation of trial expert. Obtained costs following defense verdict.
  • Obtained multiple favorable settlements on behalf of long-term care and assisted living facilities concerning negligence and breach of contract claims brought by residents and former residents.

• Products Liability
  • Represented tobacco manufacturer and multiple retailers and/or distributors against claims brought by multiple individual smokers for breach of warranty, negligence, civil conspiracy, wrongful death, and violation of G. L. c. 93A. Coordinated defense efforts with national counsel. Developed defense strategies, drafted pleadings and motions, and conducted discovery and depositions. Successful deposition of plaintiff led to one outright dismissal of case.
  • Obtained summary judgment on behalf of cosmetic company based on plaintiff’s failure to assert product liability and negligence claims arising from injuries allegedly caused by company’s hair dye within the statute of limitations.
  • Obtained favorable settlement on behalf of insulation contractor with respect to claims that the contractor failed to warn of alleged dangers caused by exposure to insulation product.

• Probate Litigation
  • Represent contestant in will contest and trust petition in Probate and Family Court based on undue influence, lack of capacity and fraud.

Professional Affiliation and Activities

• Massachusetts Bar Association
• Boston Bar Association
• Defense Research Institute
• The Jewish Journal, Executive Committee and Board of Overseers
• Women's Bar Association, Member
• Attended IADC Annual Trial Academy at Stanford Law School (2018)