Get to know Matt Nickel, a partner in Dentons’ Litigation practice who rejoined the Firm in Dallas last year. We sat down with Matt to discuss what brought him back and why he feels at home at Dentons.

1. Why did you decide to return to Dentons?

Returning to Dentons was truly coming home for me. I originally joined Dentons legacy firm Sonnenschein in 2010 and lived through the growth of the firm to SNR Dentons and eventually Dentons. Leaving Dentons was an extremely difficult decision, but coming back was an easy one. That decision was largely based on the people at the Firm, in Dallas and across the globe, who I worked with in the past and wanted to work with again.

2. What are Dentons’ primary benefits to your practice and your clients? What sets our Litigation practice apart from competitors?

The reach of the firm and the expertise of the lawyers here are the primary benefits to my practice. Being the world’s largest law firm is impressive. But even more impressive are the breadth and depth of expertise that we have in the US and internationally. Dentons’ Commercial Litigation team is highly skilled in every type of litigation that our clients might face and has handled those cases in jurisdictions across the globe. Dentons teams work seamlessly across geographies to put the right client teams together to achieve the best results for our clients.

3. How has your experience been onboarding and starting your practice since rejoining Dentons? What sort of support have you received?

The onboarding process has been very smooth. It helped that I had a large number of friends and former colleagues at the firm that I was able to reconnect with as I rejoined. The Firm devotes a lot of resources to integrating lateral lawyers. One of the most helpful things has been regular meetings with my Integration Team. 

4. What would you tell someone who’s considering joining Dentons’ Litigation team?

If you want to work on sophisticated cases with fantastic lawyers, then you should absolutely consider Dentons. Our team is filled with great people who also happen to be great lawyers, which makes coming to work everyday something to look forward to.

5. What are the top things someone should look for when choosing their first or their next firm?

Things like a firm’s platform, expertise and profitability are all important. But I think the most important thing in choosing a firm is the people there. You can have the most interesting case or legal issue but if you don’t like the people you are working with or if you aren’t supported, then you won’t like the work. The lawyers at Dentons are more collaborative and work together better than at any other firm I have seen.

6. What are some of the most important or timely issues in class actions currently? What are the biggest challenges your clients are facing?

We are still seeing an increase in class action filings across the country. A significant amount of these cases target allegedly harmful substances (such as PFAS) in food products, medications, household goods and cosmetics. Dentons has deep experience in defending all types of class litigations, including insurance coverage, consumer and securities class actions.  

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