Howard Matz

Howard Matz
Howard Matz
Senior Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California
	In office; July 11, 2011 – April 1, 2013
Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California
	In office; June 29, 1998 – July 11, 2011
Appointed by	Bill Clinton
Preceded by	Harry Lindley Hupp
Succeeded by	Michael W. Fitzgerald
Personal details
Born	1943 (age 80–81); Brooklyn, New York, U.S.
Alma mater	Columbia University; Harvard Law School

A. Howard Matz (born 1943) is a former judge on the United States District Court for the Central District of California.

Matz moved to Los Angeles with the law firm of Hughes Hubbard & Reed, where he worked from 1972 to 1974. He served as an Assistant U.S. Attorney for the Central District of California from 1974 to 1978, and was Chief of the Special Prosecutions unit from 1977 to 1978, when he left to return to Hughes Hubbard as a partner.

On October 27, 1997, President Bill Clinton nominated Matz to a seat on the Central District of California vacated by Harry L. Hupp. Matz was unanimously confirmed by the Senate on June 26, 1998.

He assumed senior status on July 11, 2011 and retired on April 1, 2013.

Notable rulings

Matz presided over the first legal challenge to the U.S. government's treatment of Guantanamo Bay detainees in a habeas corpus petition brought by a civil rights group seeking relief for the detainees.^{[citation needed]}
Matz was the judge in Perfect 10 v. Google, Inc., a copyright case in which Perfect 10 sued Google for displaying thumbnail-sized reproductions of its images. Matz rejected Google's fair use defense, distinguishing Kelly v. Arriba Soft Corporation. The Ninth Circuit reversed in Perfect 10, Inc. v. Amazon.com, Inc..

Legal offices
Preceded by Harry Lindley Hupp	Judge of the United States District Court for the Central District of California 1998–2011	Succeeded by Michael W. Fitzgerald