Matt Evans is a Director of Damon Key and practices in the firm’s Business and Commercial Law, Real Estate, Construction Law, Creditors’ Rights, and Trial and Appellate Litigation, Arbitration and Mediation practice groups. With a primary focus on commercial disputes, Matt aims to provide legal services in a manner that places his clients’ goals at the center, with a mind toward helping them prevent disputes before they occur and, when necessary, resolve disputes by finding practical, sensible, and efficient solutions that are firmly grounded in the law.

With this approach in mind, Matt has litigated a wide variety of cases on behalf of both businesses and individuals, ranging from relatively minor landlord-tenant issues to multi-million dollar commercial, construction, and real estate disputes. He has provided legal services on behalf of Fortune 500 companies, national and local banks, general contractors, subcontractors, and suppliers, real estate holding companies, and local businesses and nonprofit organizations, both large and small. Recognized by Super Lawyers as a “Rising Star” since 2013, Matt has experience litigating cases before the Hawaii District Courts, Circuit Courts, Intermediate Court of Appeals, and Supreme Court, as well as the United States District Court for the District of Hawaii and the Ninth Circuit Court of Appeals.

Matt currently serves as one of the firm’s member contacts with Meritas, an established worldwide alliance of more than 180 independent commercial law firms with a collective presence in more than 240 global markets. He also serves as a member of Damon Key’s Executive Committee and plays a vital role in managing the firm.

Matt is also an active member of both the Hawaii State Bar Association (HSBA) and the American Bar Association (ABA). He was previously chosen as a Fellow of the HSBA’s Leadership Institute (2013), and was instrumental in the formation and success of the Young Lawyers Committee of the ABA’s Section of State and Local Government Law, having served as Secretary and later Co-Chair of the Committee from 2013-2016.  In 2018, he was named by Pacific Business News as a “40 Under 40” honoree and recognized as one of the best and brightest young business leaders in Hawaii.

Born and raised in Kaneohe on the windward side of Oahu, Matt obtained his Bachelor’s degree, with distinction, from the University of Hawaii at Manoa, where he majored in Communication and minored in Music. He continued on to the University of Hawaii’s William S. Richardson School of Law for law school where he obtained his J.D. and graduated magna cum laude. During law school, Matt was the recipient of several academic and scholarship awards, including the Hawaii State Bar Association C. Jepson Garland Memorial Scholarship Award for authoring the best paper on Real Property and Land Use, the CALI Excellence for the Future Award for achieving the highest grade in Negotiable Instruments, and the Richard S. and Percy K. Mirikitani Memorial Scholarship Award.

When he’s not in the office or courtroom working for his clients, Matt looks forward to spending time with his wife, Taryn, and their dog, Ava. He enjoys traveling, sports, and playing music. And he loves being a lawyer.

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Professional and Community Involvement

• American Bar Association
  • State and Local Government Law Section
    • Young Lawyers Committee: Co-Chair (2014-2016); Secretary (2013-2014)
    • Land Use Planning and Zoning Committee
  • Business Law Section
  • Dispute Resolution Section
  • Forum on Construction Industry
    • Young Lawyers Division
  • Litigation Section
    • Young Advocates Committee
  • Public Contract Law Section
  • Young Lawyers Division

• Hawaii State Bar Association
  • Litigation Section
  • Business Law Section
  • Alternative Dispute Resolution Section
  • Real Property & Financial Services Section
  • Appellate Section
  • Leadership Institute Fellow (2013)
  • Young Lawyers Division

• Meritas Law Firms Worldwide
  • Member contact (2016 – present)
  • Young Lawyer Liaison (2013 – 2016)
  • Real Estate Group Steering Committee

• Pacific Business News
  • 40 Under 40 Honoree (2018)

• King Kamehameha V – Judiciary History Center
  • Board of Directors (2015 – present)

• Hawaii Baptist Academy Alumni Association
  • Treasurer (2016 – present)
  • Board of Directors (2013 – present)
  • Volunteer coach (Hawaii Baptist Academy: 2014 – 2015)
    • Mock Trial Program

• Access to Justice Room (Honolulu District Court)
  • Volunteer

• HSBA Legal Line Hotline
  • Volunteer

Representative Cases

• C & J Coupe Family Limited Partnership v. County of Hawaii; 1250 Oceanside Partners, Supreme Court of the United States, Docket No. 11-75 (On Petition for a Writ of Certiorari)

Publications

• Co-author, Hawaii Appellate Practice Manual (Hawaii State Bar Association 2012)
• Co-author, State-By-State Guide to Architect, Engineer, and Contractor Licensing, 2nd ed. (Wolters Kluwer, Cumulative Supplement 2010 – 2017)