Partner
Areas of Practice
- Litigation, Public Entity Defense
Address: 444 S. Flower Street
Suite 1800
Los Angeles, CA 90071-2919
Tel: (213) 489-0028
Fax: (213) 489-0552
Email: ematthews@imwlaw.com
Eulanda Lynn Matthews, was born on July 28, 1959, in Evanston, Illinois. She moved to Los Angeles from Evanston in 1968. She became an associate with then Ivie and McNeill, Inc. in 1987.
During her law school career, Ms. Matthews served as a judicial extern with the U.S. District Court, Central District of California for Judge Terry J. Hatter, Jr. She also served as a law clerk with the Western Center on Law and Poverty.
Prior to joining Ivie, McNeill & Wyatt, Inc., Ms. Matthews served as an attorney with the Legal Assistance Foundation of Chicago. As a legal aid attorney, she represented low income, underprivileged and underrepresented individuals. Her clients included individuals who were denied public aid benefits, unemployment benefits, Social Security benefits, discriminated against and housing and employment and/or facing an eviction. She is most proud of a case she handled that changed Illinois law providing that illegitimate children have the same right to inherit the pension benefits of a deceased parent pursuant to the equal protection clause.
Since joining Ivie, McNeill & Wyatt, Inc. in 1987, she has successfully litigated cases in the areas of personal injury, contract, criminal and family law. She became a partner in January 2001. Her trial experience includes wrongful death and motor vehicle negligence cases, as well as suits involving breach of contract and breach of fiduciary duty. Ms. Matthews has successfully argued appeals before the second appellate district.
In 2005, Ms Matthews along with her partners were honored as outstanding law firm of the year, by the Minority Corporate Counsel Program.
Examples of matters that Ms. Matthews has handled in recent years include: • Ms. Matthews, along with partner Rickey Ivie, won a plaintiff verdict for a affordable housing non-profit corporation. Plaintiff claimed defendant breached a partnership contract and its fiduciary duty to build tax credit allocation committee multi-unit single housing units. Defendant a for profit construction corporation claimed there was no contract due to bilateral mistake. After a day of deliberation, the jury returned a verdict for approximately half a million dollars in favor of the plaintiff.
Ms. Matthews, along with partner Rickey Ivie successfully mediated a motor vehicle (bus) versus automobile accident defending a public transportation company. Liability and damages were disputed plaintiff alleged two back surgeries, hospitalization and rehabilitation resulting from a staph infection. Plaintiff’s demand exceeded five million dollars. Defendant disputed liability and alleged that the surgeries were unrelated to the accident. The case was favorably resolved within the self-insured retention limits.
Her most memorable case since joining this firm involved representing a tenant in a case against a slum landlord and recovering a verdict in excess of $15,000 for the tenant.
