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Army engineers welcome new district counsel

USACE - Alaska District
Published Aug. 15, 2022
Updated: Aug. 15, 2022
Matthew Prieksat assumed duties as the new district counsel for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District in April.

Matthew Prieksat assumed duties as the new district counsel for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District in April.

Matthew Prieksat assumed duties as the new district counsel for the U.S. Army Corps of Engineers – Alaska District in April.

In this role, he serves as the chief legal advisor to the commander as well as other senior leaders and staff, while operating as a member of the organization’s corporate board. He oversees the district’s Office of Counsel, which employs a staff of five attorneys, two paralegals and one legal assistant. The team provides counsel and services that address administrative matters, civil works, contracts, environmental law, ethics, fiscal law, Freedom of Information Act, Privacy Act, litigation, personnel law, real estate, torts and miscellaneous legal issues. In addition, the group delivers legal advice on topics ranging from business and reputational risk to those that are operational or political in nature.

Prior to his current position, Prieksat served as deputy district counsel for the USACE Alaska District. He previously worked as an attorney for the 673rd Air Base Wing at Joint Base Elmendorf-Richardson, Alaska. In that role, he operated as the chief of contracts, fiscal law and ethics. Prieksat began his legal career as a state prosecutor for the Alaska Department of Law.

In addition to his job responsibilities with USACE, Prieksat serves as the staff judge advocate for the 176th Wing in the Alaska Air National Guard.

In 2018, he received the Young Alumni Award for Outstanding Achievement from the Fort Hays State University Alumni Association in Kansas. In 2016, Prieksat was named the 673rd Air Base Wing’s Civilian of the Year in the staff agencies category and selected Pacific Air Forces’ Outstanding Civilian Attorney of the Year.

Prieksat is admitted to practice law before the Supreme Court of Alaska, Supreme Court of Utah, U.S. Air Force Court of Criminal Appeals, and the U. S. Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces.

In 2007, Prieksat obtained a bachelor’s degree in philosophy and political science from Fort Hays State University in Hays, Kansas. While there, he was a member of the varsity baseball team that was the 2003 Rocky Mountain Athletic Conference Champion.

Prieksat resides in Anchorage with his wife and three children. Outside of the workplace, he enjoys spending time with his family, exploring the outdoors and coaching his son’s Little League Baseball team.

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Contact
John Budnik
public.affairs3@usace.army.mil

Release no. 22-013