Matthew V. DelDuca is a partner with Pepper Hamilton LLP and chair of the firm’s Labor and Employment Practice Group. He also is a member of the Commercial Litigation Practice Group. Mr. DelDuca is an experienced trial lawyer who, over the last two decades, has litigated hundreds of cases in the New Jersey state and federal courts and has tried dozens of cases to verdict. His trial experience includes individual and class employment cases, non-competition and trade secret litigation, complex business litigation, shareholder litigation, product liability and mass tort litigation.
Mr. DelDuca is highly rated by Chambers USA: America’s Leading Lawyers for Business, which has noted he “stands out as a massively experienced litigator with a strong track record in cases connected to the health care and life sciences arenas” and that his strengths are his “quickly expedient responses to client queries and technical ability to deal with tricky contract negotiations.”
Mr. DelDuca’s representations include:
- successfully obtained a $13.6 million verdict for a landowner against a national REIT in a trial in the U.S. District Court in New Jersey
- selected as trial counsel in the recent Vioxx litigation, which involved thousands of cases asserting consumer fraud and product liability claims in the New Jersey state courts
- selected the juries for the defense in every Vioxx case tried in New Jersey
- won defense verdicts in employment discrimination and retaliation trials in Burlington, Mercer, Middlesex, Gloucester and Essex Counties
- won a defense verdict in a race discrimination class action trial in federal court against the EEOC and private counsel
- won a defense verdict in a product liability trial in Ocean County, New Jersey against a national tool manufacturer.
Mr. DelDuca regularly represents employers in state and federal labor and employment litigation involving claims of discrimination, wrongful discharge and defamation, as well as other related disputes. He also represents employers in litigation to protect confidential information and trade secrets and to enforce restrictive covenants. In addition, Mr. DelDuca represents management in labor negotiations and unfair labor practice proceedings before the National Labor Relations Board. He has handled labor arbitration proceedings in a variety of industries and counsels employers on employment and business matters.
Mr. DelDuca has argued many cases before the New Jersey Appellate Division and the New Jersey Supreme Court. Most recently, he argued the appeal in Chandelaria v. Rent-A-Center, 2007 WL 935584 (N.J. Super. Ct., App. Div., March 30, 2007), persuading the Appellate Division to reject the attempted amendment of the plaintiff’s claims to assert a putative class action. He has successfully defended verdicts and the entry of summary judgment for clients in a number of state and federal appeals. In addition, Mr. DelDuca was co-counsel for Citibank in a class action involving alleged violations of the state Retail Installment Sales Act. Sherman v. Citibank (South Dakota), N.A., 143 N.J. 35 (1995), vacated, 517 U.S. 1241 (1996).
The matters Mr. DelDuca is currently handling are as varied and complex as his trial and appellate experience. They include:
- defending a leading worldwide retailer in a major consumer class action in New Jersey state court
- defending an international law firm against contentious and extensive discovery demands
- defending employers, such as an acclaimed supermarket chain voted among the “Best Places to Work in America,” an international electronics company, a medical device manufacturer and service provider, and a worldwide food manufacturer, in employment litigation throughout New Jersey.
Mr. DelDuca frequently speaks and presents articles on trial advocacy and a wide variety of labor and employment matters.
Mr. DelDuca is a member of the Federal Practice and Procedure Section, the Labor and Employment Section, and the Pro Bono Committee of the New Jersey State Bar Association. He also is a member of the Federal Bar Association of New Jersey.
