Matt Preston litigates complex commercial matters with the discipline of a combat veteran and the precision of a former federal law clerk. He represents companies in business disputes, class actions, and administrative challenges in state and federal courts, from pleading through appeal. He also advises on the use of artificial intelligence (AI) in litigation strategy, e-discovery, and investigations.
Before joining Jones Day in 2025, Matt served several clerkships and in private practice he has worked on antitrust, contract, and trademark matters, including contributing to a successful summary judgment motion for a Fortune 500 company and preparing trademark oppositions for an international humanitarian medical organization. As a student-attorney, he coauthored a brief in a Michigan agency action case, with his argument later adopted by the Michigan Supreme Court.
Matt's writing appears in the Belmont Law Review, the Illinois Bar Journal, and USA Today, with work forthcoming in the Veterans Law Review. He teaches AI to courts and bar groups, serves as the CFO of the Legal Accountability Project, and is a member of the Hispanic National Bar Association.
Additional Publications
The Tweet Test: Attributing Presidential Intent to Agency Action, 10 Belmont L. Rev. 1 (2022)
Additional Speaking Engagements
Corpus Linguistics, Artificial Intelligence (AI), and the Law Continuing Legal Education (CLE)]. Presenter (2024, May). How to use and the costs and benefits of generative AI. U.S. District Court for the District of Puerto Rico, San Juan, PR.
ChatGPT: The Law Clerk’s Law Clerk? [Training Seminar]. Presenter (2023, July). How to use and the costs and benefits of generative AI. U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Michigan, Detroit, MI.
- University of Michigan (J.D. cum laude 2021; Senior Editor, Michigan Law Review; Pro Bono Service Award; Provost's Teaching Innovation Team Prize; IISL Manfred Lachs Space Law Moot Court Competition; Faculty Hiring Committee; Sentinel of Freedom; National AMVETS Scholar; VFW Scholar; Leadership Council on Legal Diversity [LCLD] Scholar; Hispanic Scholarship Fund [HSF] Scholar); Indiana University School of Liberal Arts (B.A. in Philosophy and in Political Science summa cum laude 2017, with a Certificate in Latino Studies; Salutatorian; Commencement Speaker; Top 100 Students Award; Academic Achievement Awards [top faculty-chosen student in degree program] in Philosophy, Political Science, and Latino Studies)
- Admitted in California; Illinois; Indiana; U.S. Supreme Court; U.S. Courts of Appeals for the Sixth, Seventh, Eighth, and Federal Circuits; U.S. Court of Appeals for Veterans Claims; and U.S. District Courts for the Eastern District of Michigan and Northern District of California; not admitted in Michigan
- Michigan Advisory Committee, U.S. Commission on Civil Rights (2025-present); Executive Leadership Council, U.S. Department of Veterans Affairs (2020-2022); Intern, Policy Analyst, Indiana State Senate (2018); and served as a loadmaster in the U.S. Air Force and then as a crew chief in the U.S. Army, completing a year-long deployment in Afghanistan as part of a Downed Aircraft Recovery Team (2006-2018)
American Bar Association, On The Rise: Top 40 Young Lawyers Award (2025) (recognizes top lawyers under the age of 40)
AmeriCorp: President's Volunteer Service Award (2017 and 2018) and MLK Drum Major for Service Award (2017)
- Law Clerk to: Judge Ralph R. Erickson, U.S. Court of Appeals, Eighth Circuit (2024-2025); Judge Susan K. DeClercq (2024) and Judge Thomas L. Ludington (2021-2023), U.S. District Court, Eastern District of Michigan; and Justice David F. Viviano, Michigan Supreme Court (2023-2024)
- Spanish