Fox Rothschild LLP congratulates Matthew S. Adams, who was elected President of the Association of Criminal Defense Lawyers of New Jersey (ACDL-NJ) for the 2023-2024 term.

For more than 35 years, the ACDL-NJ has played a vital role in New Jersey's criminal justice system with a goal to secure “the Constitutional rights guaranteed to all, and to defend these rights against government infringement or encroachment.”

As Co-Chair of the firm’s White-Collar Criminal Defense & Regulatory Compliance Practice, Adams leads a nationwide group of more than 30 trial lawyers who handle a broad range of matters from regulatory inquiries to criminal prosecutions. Over the last 15 years, Adams has played a key role in growing its ranks and broadening its influence, adding multiple members who are former federal prosecutors or regulators who possess key insight into law enforcement and government agencies’ methods and practices.

Adams maintains a diverse national practice with a focus on criminal defense, regulatory compliance and complex commercial litigation.  An experienced criminal and civil trial attorney, Adams serves as an ally to clients ranging from individuals and small businesses to multinational corporations and guides them through indictment, grand jury investigations and “bet the company” commercial disputes.

Adams, who is well versed in the U.S. Department of Justice’s crackdown on fraud and abuse involving government funding distributed under the Paycheck Protection Program and other CARES Act initiatives, provides compliance advice to companies that have received emergency funding and represents companies whose loans or grants have come under scrutiny or been referred for prosecution.

A leader in his field, Adams frequently appears as amicus in trial and appellate courts grappling with issues of first impression and other high-impact litigation matters.

He earned his J.D. from Seton Hall University School of Law and his B.S. from Rutgers University.