Matt Cannon

Associate


Matt founded and leads the Medical Malpractice division at Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates. Matt’s work focuses on representing the victims of catastrophic medical negligence, a passion Matt has had since he first enrolled in law school, and the driving force behind his desire to become an attorney.

Matt graduated from IIT Chicago-Kent College of Law in May 2017 and was admitted to the Illinois Bar and the federal Northern District of Illinois Bar in November 2017. While in law school, Matt was a member and team coach of the Moot Court Honor Society and earned the CALI award for the highest grade in Trial Advocacy II. Matt was also selected to the Dean’s List three times while at Chicago-Kent.

Since joining the firm in 2015, Matt has

  • Assisted the firm’s lead trial team in securing a $10 million dollar verdict for a client who was severely injured while she was at a local pharmacy,
  • Assisted in securing an $8 million dollar verdict for an ironworker who suffered a career-ending injury on the job,
  • Authored the winning brief in Aguilar-Santos v. Briner, 2017 IL App (1st) 153593, a case involving opinion disclosures by treating and expert physicians and evidence of future medical needs,
  • Overturned on appeal a trial court decision denying his client’s reinstatement of a dismissed defendant (Cassidy v. China Vitamins, LLC, 2017 IL App (1st) 160933),
  • Successfully argued in front of the Illinois Supreme Court that the Appellate Court’s decision properly interpreted the scope of the Illinois Distributor Statute, 735 ILCS 5/2-621(b)(4) (Cassidy v. China Vitamins, LLC, 2018 IL 122873),
  • Secured numerous favorable settlements for injured workers in Illinois in front of the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission,
  • Represented multiple clients injured by medical malpractice and nursing home negligence
  • Been named one of the National Trial Lawyers’ Top 40 Under 40 civil Plaintiff’s attorneys in Illinois

Primary Practice Focus

Matt joined Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates in 2015 as a law clerk prior to passing the Bar, and works to represent those who have been harmed by medical negligence. In addition, Matt also handles select Workers’ Compensation cases for Illinois workers who have been injured on the job.

In-Depth Look

Having previously worked in medicine while serving in the U.S. Navy, Matt’s first-hand knowledge of medical care enables him to quickly recognize medical negligence when it has occurred. Matt performed hands-on patient care with the Navy for over 10 years. While there, he worked in multiple fields including trauma medicine, wound care, dermatology, critical care, and general surgery, in both inpatient and outpatient settings. Unlike most medical malpractice attorneys who have never had the opportunity to work inside an operating room, Matt has. During his time in the Navy, Matt was awarded a Purple Heart and numerous other awards for the care he provided in military treatment facilities throughout the country as well as in combat abroad.

After earning his Bachelor’s Degree with honors while still on active duty, Matt applied and was accepted to law school. During his first year of law school, Matt worked as a law clerk at a plaintiff’s personal injury firm in Chicago specializing in medical malpractice and wrongful death cases. During his second year of law school, Matt joined Horwitz, Horwitz & Associates as a law clerk for the firm’s lead trial team, assisting them in securing multiple multi-million dollar verdicts.

In his first year practicing law, Matt briefed, argued, and won in front of the Supreme Court of Illinois in a case involving the interpretation of the Illinois Distributors’ Statute. Matt successfully argued that the trial court had erred in dismissing the distributor of a faulty product which had collapsed, causing catastrophic injuries to the plaintiff. Matt argued that a prior Appellate Court decision had incorrectly interpreted a provision of the Distributors’ Statute, leading to the wrongful dismissal of the client’s case. The Supreme Court of Illinois agreed with Matt’s position, overruling both the Appellate Court’s previous decision, as well as the trial court’s dismissal, and returned the client’s case to the trial court. Matt also wrote and won the underlying appeal of the case with the Appellate Court.

In addition, Matt has briefed, argued, and won in front of the Circuit Court of Cook County, the Circuit Court of Will County, the Illinois Workers’ Compensation Commission, the Federal District Court for the Northern District of Illinois, and the Appellate Court of Illinois, First District. Matt’s military, medical, and advocacy experience enable him to have an intimate understanding of medical negligence cases and see those cases to successful outcomes.