John serves as chair of the Architectural, Engineering & Construction Defect Litigation Practice Group. In this capacity, he oversees a large group of attorneys throughout many of the firm's offices dedicated in the defense of construction professionals.
Over the past 20 years, John has handled more than 500 matters in the defense of architectural and engineering firms, general contractors, subcontractors, developers, and owners in litigation matters involving personal injury and property damage. The scope of his representation includes construction and design defect matters, breach of contract, delay damage cases, indemnity and coverage, and construction code and safety violation claims.
In addition to John's vast experience in an all matters of construction litigation, he has handled many hundreds of matters involving personal injury, product liability, and catastrophic loss matters.
John graduated from the University of Montana in 1979 with a Bachelor of Arts in history and political science. He then went on to receive his juris doctor from Southwestern University School of Law in Los Angeles, California.
Significant Representative Matters
· Successfully tried engineering malpractice claim where the demand was $1.3 million by proving client's design was altered and not the proximate cause of community wastewater treatment facility's failure.
· Successfully settled multi-plaintiff burn and personal injury case by orchestrating a settlement fund with equal contributions by multiple defendants, thus, capping catastrophic exposure and resolving liability among defendants.
· Successfully settled multimillion dollar claim by high-rise condominium owners by way of mediation.
· Successfully resolved multi-plaintiff burn case by way of mediation and use of extensive experts to reduce potential liability.
· Successfully resolved wrongful death construction case and convinced mediator that general contractor client was the least culpable of all defendants.
· Amicably resolved $25 million burn claim through negotiated settlement in multiple defendant litigation wherein we represented design professional who contributed to the design of a hydrogen furnace which exploded. Obtained settlement through small contribution by establishing limited liability for proximate cause of the accident.
Published Works
· "Additional Insured Status of Design Professionals," Defense Digest, Vol. 4, No. 3, 1998
· Proceedings of the 42nd Annual Meeting of Invited Attorneys
Classes/Seminars Taught
· Defending Roof Collapse Cases
· Defending Architect and Engineer Malpractice Claims in New Jersey
· The Applicability of the Economic Loss Doctrine to Design Professional Claims
Associations & Memberships
· American Bar Association
· Camden County Bar Association
· Defense Research Institute
· Gloucester County Bar Association
· New Jersey Defense Association
· New Jersey State Bar Association
Honors & Awards
· AV® Preeminent™ by LexisNexis Martindale-Hubbell
· New Jersey Super Lawyer, 2005
Year Joined Organization: 1997