About Us

Matheny Sears Linkert & Jaime, LLP was founded by Henry G. (Hank) Matheny in 1974.  Hank was a “larger than life” man with a colorful background that served him well as a trial attorney. He fought in Korea and, after the war, was a claims adjuster in the South Pacific.  He then became a cartoonist for Walt Disney before heading to law school. Hank was one of the consummate trial attorneys of his generation in Northern California.  Fittingly, while defending an anti-trust case, he passed away during a trial recess. He “defensed” the case posthumously. Doug Sears joined the firm as a partner in 1979, following a successful career at the Sacramento County District Attorney's Office.  Rick Linkert joined the firm in 1979 after completing law school. He became a partner in 1984 and has been Managing Partner since 1995. Matt Jaime joined the firm in 1989.  He became a partner in 1996.

Firm Philosophy
At our core, we are counselors and trial attorneys. The firm philosophy is to work hard to thoroughly understand the issues, identify client goals, and develop a strategy to efficiently and successfully achieve a successful result.  We believe that trial should be avoided unless there is no other viable option. To avoid the uncertainties of trial, however, the evidence must be developed in a way to facilitate either a dispositive motion or, if such is not possible, a reasonable settlement. We believe that maximizing the opportunity to avoid trial requires being prepared for trial. We advocate extending the proverbial “olive branch”, while holding the proverbial “meat cleaver” ready in the other hand in order to avoid being at the mercy of our adversaries.

Dispositive Motions
Some of the most powerful tools available to a litigator are dispositive motions - Motions for Summary Judgment/Adjudication, Motions for Judgment on the Pleadings and Demurrers.  These dispositive motions are only available where there are no disputed factual issues but only legal issues to be adjudicated.  Recognizing cases that are suitable for a dispositive motion takes knowledge of the law and experience.  We invite review of our results in this area. We have often extracated our clients from lawsuits under circumstances where successful dispostive motions were thought by others to be impossible.

Settlement
Today, there are a variety of tools available to resolve cases, ranging from direct negotiations to mediation and judicial settlement conferences. While it is true that most cases settle, it is not true that most settlements are advantageous to both parties.  We are proud of our settlement record over the years and describe, on our results page, some of the notable settlements that are not protected by a condition of confidentiality.

Trial
We take cases to trial on a regular basis. In 2009, we tried 12 cases to verdict.  The fact that we are known for trying cases helps our clients achieve advantageous settlements. When we state that we will try a case if our client’s bottom-line offer of settlement is not accepted, our adversaries know that we will actually take the case to verdict and that they are in for a fight. From us, the threat of trial is not hollow.  We recognize that the last thing a client usually wants is to end up in trial. Yet, it is the recognized ability of the firm to try cases that enables our clients to reach their ultimate goals in the overwhelming majority of cases. For those cases where a reasonable resolution cannot be reached, our clients can rest assured that we have the resources, skill, experience, and yes, stomach, to present their case to a judge and jury.  The three named partners have all been elected as members of The American Board of Trial Advocacy (ABOTA). We are proud of the trial successes of our associate attorneys, some of whom have considerably more trial experience than head litigators in other firms. We believe in the right to a jury trial experience, and we work hard to extend trial opportunities to young attorneys in appropriate cases, in order to train the next generation.  Reviewing our trial results,  you will find that we have had successes in a variety of cases, including those involving high exposure.

Matheny Sears Linkert & Jaime, LLP handles cases throughout California. While our practice is principally focused on Sacramento and the surrounding counties, our routine litigation territory extends from Bakersfield to the Oregon border.  We also handle selected cases in Southern California.