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Matthew Horowitz started his career as a mechanical engineer, but he longed for greater variety in his professional career. “Monotony can drive me a little crazy. I like being constantly exposed to different fields and learning about cutting-edge technology,” says Horowitz, director of corporate counsel at ChenMed, a healthcare provider with the mission of transforming the lives of older patients through affordable primary care services.
Engineers approach problems from one hundred different directions and arrive at the same answer, Horowitz says. Lawyers approach a situation from the same direction but arrive at one hundred different answers. “I’ve always kept law and tech intertwined,” he says.
A patent attorney planted the seed of Horowitz’s legal career when Horowitz was studying mechanical engineering at Lafayette College in Easton, Pennsylvania. The attorney told Horowitz that an engineer can work on a robotic arm for five or ten years, a significant portion of their career. The patent attorney, on the other hand, studies the robotic arm in a fraction of the time, writes the patent, and moves on to the next product. That idea appealed to Horowitz.
“In private practice, people are coming to you because they need your help. As in-house counsel you have to make sure the people are coming to you at the right time, that people know you exist, and that you can help them through their issues.”
Matthew Horowitz
After earning his JD from the University of Miami School of Law, Horowitz came to ChenMed in 2020 as its corporate counsel for IP. Charged with protecting the company’s IP-driven competitive edge, Horowitz inventoried ChenMed’s trade secrets, took over its trademark portfolio, and filed trademark applications, patents, and copyright applications.
“I was making sure the company as a whole was well protected,” Horowitz says. For most large businesses, IP is their greatest asset. Horowitz gained insight into ChenMed’s business model through numerous stakeholder interviews and a review of the company’s operations.
Although Horowitz still heads up ChenMed’s IP protection, his role has expanded to cover many other areas, such as regulatory compliance, litigation, contracts, and strategic advisement. One recent area he’s focused on is working with ChenMed’s AI task force. AI is rapidly becoming involved in the healthcare industry and Horowitz assists ChenMed with making sure any use of AI is complaint and does not undermine ChenMed’s IP rights and confidential information.
AI-generated information poses unique legal challenges because the outputs are not created by humans and are consequently not patentable or copyrightable. If ChenMed’s software engineers use AI-generated information to develop software programs, Horowitz must find a way to protect that software. “This could be a potential issue. These are some of the concerns we deal with,” he says.
“I’ve always kept law and tech intertwined.”
Matthew Horowitz
Additionally, generative AI outputs can be subject to biases and inaccuracies. “It depends upon how you enter the information and queries into the system. We’re not quite there where [generative AI] can be relied on for everything,” Horowitz says. “I make sure that whoever is using it is adequately trained and understands how they’re using it.”
Horowitz spent the first nine years of his law career at three separate law firms before coming in-house at ChenMed. He cut his litigation chops at Allen, Dyer, Doppelt, Milbrath + Gilchrist, then represented insurance companies on subrogation cases at Cozen O’Connor. When Horowitz first arrived at ChenMed he experienced the “growing pains” of transitioning from firm life to working in-house, as he handled legal issues while also building relationships.
“In private practice, people are coming to you because they need your help. As in-house counsel (you have to make sure) the people are coming to you at the right time, that people know you exist, and that you can help them through their issues,” Horowitz says. Although the variety he sought as a young lawyer has narrowed, he enjoys plumbing the depths of healthcare and emerging technology.
Among his peers at ChenMed, Horowitz is known as “the professor.” He says, “If I wasn’t doing this, I’d be a professor. I love teaching. I love watching people learn and grow, and it helps me in the end because then they can assist me.” He operates under the assumption that everyone excels in at least one area and encourages his colleagues to share their knowledge with others so they can all be the best they can be.
Cozen O’Connor shares Matthew Horowitz’s dedication to excellence in the health care industry by supporting ChenMed’s continued success in providing high-quality, personalized care. This commitment is reflected in Cozen O’Connor’s work with ChenMed, where the firm’s renowned Intellectual Property Department, coupled with the reach and resources of a full-service law firm, ensures that ChenMed’s innovative health care models are well-protected. Our 50-lawyer IP group advises clients on all aspects of patents, trademarks, copyrights, trade secrets, and unfair competition, from clearance and procurement to litigation. With over 925 attorneys across 33 offices, Cozen O’Connor works to achieve clients’ business objectives.
