Jim Matulis

A partner at the Tampa, Florida, law firm Matulis IP Law, Jim Matulis is a skilled intellectual property (IP) and business law attorney serving clients since 1996. His experience as a litigator includes extensive involvement in contract disputes, noncompete agreements, patent infringement, trademark infringements, copyright infringement and compliance with the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA), unfair competition, business dissolutions, internet defamation, trade secret and restrictive covenants.

Jim has been certified by the Florida Bar as an expert in Intellectual Property Law since 2007.  He is also a registered patent attorney and has both prosecuted and litigated patents before the U.S. Patent Office and federal courts.  

He has been selected six times in the past eleven years by peers as the Tampa-area Lawyer of the Year  in intellectual property law areas, including Copyright Law (2023 & 2021), Intellectual Property Litigation (2019 & 2016) and Trademark Law (2017 & 2013) via The Best Lawyers in America® peer voting. When not being named as a Lawyer of the Year, his peers have acknowledged his skills and experience in the specialty areas of Commercial Litigation (2015-2023); Intellectual Property Litigation (2013-2023); Trademark Law (2013-2023); and Copyright Law (2014-2023).

Mr. Matulis is rated AV Preeminent* through Martindale-Hubbell for his professional excellence. He has a “Superb” rating on Avvo.

A graduate of Clemson University, Mr. Matulis graduated among the top in his class with a Bachelor of Science in chemical engineering in 1989. Later in 1995, he earned his Doctor of Jurisprudence with honors from the University of Florida Fredric G. Levin College of Law. During his time at the law school, he served as the senior executive editor of Florida Law Review and the president of the Environmental Law Society.

A registered patent attorney at the United States Patent and Trademark Office, Mr. Matulis is licensed to practice in all the state courts of Florida, the ​U.S. Supreme Court, the U.S. Court of Appeals for the Federal Circuit, the U.S. District Court for the Middle, Northern, Southern Districts of Florida, and the Eastern District of Michigan.

Mr. Matulis is honored with several leadership positions in legal organizations. He is the executive council member of The Florida Bar Business Law Section and the former chair of its Intellectual Property Law Committee. He served as the co-chair of the Hillsborough County Bar Association’s Intellectual Property Law Section and it Mediation and Arbitration Section.  He is a member of the American Intellectual Property Law Association. He has presented on IP law topics at multiple conferences and seminars and has also authored a number of articles. 

Mr. Matulis is also certified state and federal court mediator and arbitrator and is well-versed in resolving matters that involve contract disputes, noncompete agreements, patent infringement, trademark infringements, copyright infringement, unfair competition, business dissolutions, internet defamation, restrictive covenants as well as those related to the Digital Millennium Copyright Act (DMCA). 

**AV®, AV Preeminent®, Martindale-Hubbell Distinguished and Martindale-Hubbell Notable are certification marks used under license in accordance with the Martindale-Hubbell certification procedures, standards and policies. Martindale-Hubbell® is the facilitator of a peer-review rating process. Ratings reflect the anonymous opinions of members of the bar and the judiciary. Martindale-Hubbell® Peer Review Rating™ fall into two categories – legal ability and general ethical standards.