Matthew Schneider

Matthew Schneider is a former United States Attorney who focuses on crisis management, investigations, and high-profile, high-stakes litigation. He has over 25 years of experience working in state and federal government and law enforcement. He represents clients in federal and state courts, in internal investigations, and in investigations and inquires conducted by the FBI, IRS, United States Senate, and U.S. House of Representatives.

As a former state and federal prosecutor, Matthew's background enables him to provide effective counsel to clients in a broad range of practice areas such as allegations of illegal or unethical behavior, state or federal law enforcement investigations, or State Attorney General investigations, including allegations of fraud, price gouging, Consumer Protection Act violations, antitrust issues, and licensing or regulatory violations. He frequently counsels companies and people who are victims of crime.

With his in-depth knowledge of criminal statutes, Matthew can help clients navigate internal wrongdoing, grand jury investigations, embezzlement claims, False Claims Act allegations, and fraud charges.

Matthew has been recognized by Chambers USA 2023 as a leader in the field of Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations.

Prior to joining Honigman, Matthew served as the United States Attorney for the Eastern District of Michigan. As the chief federal law enforcement officer in 34 counties, he supervised and directed all federal litigation within the District. In addition to his prosecutions of international terrorism, violent crime, public corruption, environmental crime, and financial fraud, he successfully prosecuted the corrupt leadership of the United Auto Workers union—including two of its Presidents—and brokered the consent decree to return the governance of the UAW to the hard-working men and women of the union.

Matthew also served as Michigan's Chief Deputy Attorney General, overseeing the state's 40,000 ongoing criminal and civil cases. One of his first duties in the office was to personally argue the Detroit bankruptcy trial, successfully achieving the historic ruling that City of Detroit was eligible to declare bankruptcy. One of his last assignments was to begin the investigation and prosecution of former Michigan State University physician Larry Nassar.

As the Michigan Supreme Court's Chief of Staff and General Counsel, Matthew provided overall direction for the administration of Michigan's Judicial Branch of government and served as chief legal counsel to the Chief Justice and the Justices.

Matthew is also a former federal prosecutor with the United States Department of Justice in Detroit and held the U.S. Government's highest security clearance, Top Secret S.C.I. During his 16 years as a prosecutor, he received numerous awards from state and federal law enforcement agencies including the FBI, the DEA, and the ATF.

Prior to becoming a federal prosecutor, Matthew served on the legal staff of President George W. Bush as Senior Advisor and Assistant General Counsel in the White House Budget Office, where he helped to develop the President's major policy, budget, and legal initiatives, and drafted the President’s Signing Statements and Executive Orders.

Matthew previously practiced international law with the Washington, D.C. firm of Wiley Rein LLP, where he represented American companies in suits against foreign governments for unfair business, tariff, and trade actions.

Practice Areas

Representative Matters

• Completed an investigation for a large public university’s Board of Trustees into whether the university satisfied its state law obligations to properly report the alleged sexual misconduct of university employees.  Honigman reviewed over 24,000 documents and interviewed 18 witnesses, including all eight trustees, the university president, and numerous current and former employees 
• Concluded an investigation for the president and Board of Trustees of a public research university regarding allegations of faculty and staff misconduct and sexual harassment related to an external public relations firm. Honigman interviewed 53 witness, including faculty, staff, employees, former students, and university officials, applying their analysis to the university’s obligations to follow state and federal laws and university policies
• Assisted multiple people in Congressional investigations and inquiries compelling their testimony before the U.S. Congress and federal Grand Juries
• Investigated workplace harassment and misconduct at multiple businesses
• Assisted law enforcement in the investigation and prosecution of numerous bad actors who victimized clients in high-dollar financial fraud schemes
• Investigated computer intrusions and hacking for companies, banks, and people across the country
• Led review of employee thefts and embezzlements against companies and nonprofit charity groups
• Counseled and advised countless victims of crime in cases involving violence, harassment, and intimidation
• Assisted multiple college and high school students who were victims of stalking, bullying, and assault

Prior Experience

• United States Department of Justice, United States Attorney, Eastern District of Michigan, 2018-2021
• Michigan Department of Attorney General, Chief Deputy Attorney General, 2017; Chief Legal Counsel, 2013-2016
• Michigan Supreme Court, Chief of Staff and General Counsel, 2011-2013
• United States Department of Justice, Assistant United States Attorney, Detroit, 2003-2011
• Office of the President of the United States, Senior Advisor and Assistant General Counsel, Office of Management and Budget, 2002-2003
• Wiley, Rein & Fielding, LLP, Associate, 2000-2002
• Office of the Governor of Michigan, Public Events and Advance Coordinator, 1996-1997
• Winthrop, Stimson, Putnam & Roberts, New York City, Summer Associate, 2000

Academic Appointments

• Michigan State University College of Law, Adjunct Professor, Federal Investigation and Prosecution, 2012-2017
• Western Michigan University Thomas M. Cooley Law School, Visiting Professor, Constitutional Law I, Constitutional Law II, Advanced Criminal Procedure, 2007-2012

Education

Admissions

Awards

• Listed in Chambers USA, 2023-2026
  • Recognized in Band 1, the top tier, in Litigation: White-Collar Crime & Government Investigations in Michigan; Chambers USA states: 
    • "Matthew's experience and dedication to his clients are second to none. He is top notch."
    • "Matthew is a premier white-collar crime practitioner with a tremendous resume. He is a great lawyer with tremendous judgment; just a really seasoned, experienced counsellor for high-stakes problems."
    • "Matthew brings incredible insight. He's a professional's professional. I would refer him to anyone as among the best of the best."
    • "I know Matthew to be a really outstanding and talented attorney. He's an experienced prosecutor who is very skilled at representing government entities and folks investigated by the government."
    • “For high-stakes white collar litigation or investigations, Matthew Schneider is the best in class.” “Matthew has broad experience and significant depth of knowledge in multiple criminal and regulatory matters.”
    • [Chair] of Honigman LLP's investigations and white-collar defense group Matthew Schneider has a wealth of experience assisting clients with [federal, state, and international and government] agency investigations. He has additional experience handling litigation and State Attorneys General investigations. "Matthew has a deep understanding of the law as well as the ability to provide plain-language explanations to clients in challenging situations."
• Named one of The National Law Journal’s 2021 Crisis Leadership Trailblazers
• Named one of Crain's Detroit Business' 2025 Notable Litigators & Trial Attorneys
• Named as one of DBusiness Top Lawyers, 2026

News

Press Releases

Events

Mr. Schneider is a frequent speaker to attorneys, general counsels and corporate leaders on topics such as:

• Federal investigation for white collar crimes
• Intellectual property theft and cybersecurity threats from overseas
• Benefits of reporting cyber attacks to law enforcement
• Federal investigations related to corporate and financial fraud
• Federal public corruption cases in Michigan

Alerts

Podcasts