Our People
Attorneys
University of Pennsylvania Law School
One Logan Square
18th & Cherry Streets, 27th Floor
Philadelphia, PA 19103-6933
Fax: 215.568.0300
Biography
Alva Mather is dedicated to helping her clients protect their businesses by working with them through the many facets of the litigation process, proving that she works as hard as they do. With a significant portion of her practice focused on beer distributors and brewers, she forms a partnership with her clients, dedicating herself to their business needs in order to develop the best case strategy possible.
Alva has a particular knack for helping brewers and distributors identify possible pressure points in their business processes, and her clients benefit from her calculated approach. Her commitment and skill have benefited a group of beer distributors in a termination action suit, ensured a beer distributor’s non-alcoholic business received the full benefit of recently enacted legislation, and helped a national brewer navigate a strained relationship with one of its distributors.
Alva’s representation of distributors in several significant cases has provided her with the conviction and experience to succeed against large industry players, and the capacity and aptitude to develop the best case strategy possible, going to trial as necessary but settling when appropriate.
Her dedication to the cause of her clients is demonstrated by her membership in the National Beer Wholesalers Association and the Malt Beverage Distributors Association of Pennsylvania. Alva’s commitment to the practice of franchise law is evidenced by her active involvement with the American Bar Association’s Forum on Franchising as well as membership in the Philadelphia Bar Association’s Franchise Law Committee. In addition, she stays abreast of recent legal developments that affect her clients and brings those matters to their attention as well as to the attention of others in the community.
Alva has earned recognition by Pennsylvania Super Lawyers magazine as a Rising Star. She is a 2004 graduate of the University of Pennsylvania Law School, where she served as Articles Editor for the University of Pennsylvania Law Review. She received an MA in Sociology from Northwestern University and her BA, magna cum laude with High Honors in Sociology, from Mount Holyoke College.
Education
University of Pennsylvania, Philadelphia, Pennsylvania, 2004, JD
Northwestern University, Evanston, Illinois, 2001, MA
Mount Holyoke College, South Hadley, Massachusetts, 1999, BA, magna cum laude, with High Honors in Sociology
Clerkship
The Honorable James T. Giles, Chief Judge, United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania, 2004 – 2006
Honors and Awards
- Leadership, Inc., Philadelphia Class of 2009
- Named by Pennsylvania Super Lawyers magazine as a Rising Star (2008) as the result of a statewide poll of lawyers
- University of Pennsylvania Law Review, Articles Editor
Publications
- "Advantages of Smaller Firms for Working Mothers," The Legal Intelligencer, April 24, 2012
- "Bill Entangles Pa. in Liquor Makers' Relationships With Wholesalers," The Legal Intelligencer, August 23, 2011
- "High Court Decision on Contract Renewals Favors Franchisors," The Legal Intelligencer, March 29, 2010
- Comment, “Old Promises: The Judiciary and the Future of Native American Federal Acknowledgment Litigation,” 151 U. Pa. L. Rev. 1827 (2003)
Representative Cases
- Representation to successful jury verdict of a group of New Jersey malt alcoholic beverage distributors in a termination action against national brewers involving claims for breach of the New Jersey Malt Alcoholic Practices Act, breach of contract, tortious interference, and breach of the covenant of good faith and fair dealing after years of intense litigation. (Warren Distributing Co., et al. v. InBev USA, LLC & Anheuser-Busch, Inc., D.N.J. 07-cv-1053-RBK-JS)
- Advice to a New Jersey beer distributor regarding the nature and structure of its beer and non-alcoholic businesses in order to ensure compliance with, and thus protection under, recently enacted legislation
- Advice to a national brewer regarding a strained relationship with one of its distributors
- Representation to successful court verdict of a technology consulting firm for breach of contract against a school district. (Alemar Consulting, Inc. v. Pleasantville Public Schools, Superior Court of New Jersey, Law Division DC-000792-10)
- Representation to dismissal of a securities class action against a national cable company. (Clark v. Comcast Corp., et al., E.D. Pa. 08-cv-52-HB)
- Representation to dismissal of a national hospital, hospital administrators, and medical researchers in a preliminary injunction suit alleging misappropriation of trade secrets; breach of contract, specifically breach of noncompete, non-solicitation, and confidentiality agreements; tortious interference; spoliation; and breach of the Computer Fraud and Abuse Act. (deCODE Genetics, Inc. v. Hakon Hakonarson, et al., E.D. Pa. 06-cv-3461)
- Representation to court-approved settlement of a national consumer class action against a German software manufacturer. (Paul J. Garelick, et al. v. CompUSA and Nero AG/Nero Inc., N.J. Super. Ct. Law Div., MID-L-5483-06)
Professional Associations and Memberships
- National Beer Wholesalers Association
- Malt Beverage Distributors Association of Pennsylvania
- Forum on Franchising, American Bar Association
- Litigation Section, American Bar Association
- Pennsylvania Bar Association
- Franchise Law Committee, Philadelphia Bar Association
Bar Admissions
- Pennsylvania
- New Jersey
- United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- United States District Court for the District of New Jersey