J. Matthew Calloway

Matthew believes that employee benefits law, like playing guitar, is first and foremost about the fundamentals.  "Once you learn the basic chords, you can begin experimenting with different genres and ultimately master the ones you enjoy most."  Matthew sees his Groom colleagues as virtuosos in various sub-genres of the art of employee benefits, from plan design and taxation issues to health care regulation, ERISA litigation, and other specialties.

Matthew's genre of choice in employee benefits practice is fiduciary responsibility.  “In a specialized area like employee benefits law, clients need someone to scrutinize the latest trends and educate them about regulatory compliance,” says Matthew.  “By helping clients understand and comply with the law from the beginning, I can help them avoid expensive and time-consuming litigation down the road.”  He himself has recently helped clients comply with ERISA's fiduciary regulations.

“My first college major was engineering,” says Matthew, “but I enjoyed literature classes and ultimately changed my major to English.  The legal profession allows me to combine my analytical and language skills.  Like engineering, practicing law involves creative problem-solving.  Law is also rooted in language and requires strong writing ability.”

In May 2007, Matthew joined Groom where he strives to keep his clients’ long-term business goals in mind.  “I want not only to give excellent legal advice tailored to a specific situation, but also to relate that advice to the larger context and see the big-picture implications.”

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