John R. Leathers is the firm's general counsel. He has more than 35 years of legal experience from the perspective of not only a litigator, but also as an educator and published author of more than 25 articles and papers about contemporary legal developments. Prior to relocating to the firm's Pittsburgh office, John practiced law in Lexington, Kentucky. In his career, John has represented diverse clients in a broad array of matters. These range from representing coal industry clients before the U.S. Supreme Court to representing members of the Kentucky Supreme Court, judicial officials from other state courts, and the Kentucky Bar Association in matters related to the practice of law in Kentucky. His experience extends to litigating complex commercial disputes in federal and state courts and administrative adjudicatory matters, as well as alternative dispute resolution through all forms of mediation and arbitration. John's recent representations include: · Representing Celgene Corporation and Anthrogenesis Corp. in a jury trial in New Jersey state court. The corporate defendants were alleged to have defrauded a former shareholder in Anthrogenesis of corporate stock and of assisting a corporate officer in fraudulent acts directed toward the former shareholder. · Representing American Media, Inc., in disputes arising from insurance coverage for damage caused to American Media's home office in Florida when unknown persons introduced anthrax spores into the building, resulting in the death of one employee, the illness of others, and the quarantine of the building. · Securing a multimillion-dollar arbitration award for a coal producing client, where a buyer of the client's coal alleged breach of contract, breach of good faith, and fair dealing. · Assisting a bank in recovering all principal, fees and expenses, and several million dollars in interest when its mortgage and security interest in negotiable instruments in the home office of an insurer was threatened when the insurer became insolvent. Since 2005, he has been consistently selected by his peers for inclusion in the Pennsylvania Super Lawyers® list, as well as in 2009 he was selected to the Corporate Counsel Super Lawyers® list As a law professor at the University of Kentucky Law School, John had (and maintains) broad contacts with the Kentucky Bar and the legal academic community. He is a frequent speaker on legal ethics and professional negligence issues. Publications & Speeches Six Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Litigation Attorneys Selected to Corporate Counsel Super Lawyers List
August 17, 2009 Buchanan's General Counsel John Leathers Quoted on Lawsuits Against Law Firms in The Legal Intelligencer
August 6, 2008 Forty-Five Buchanan Ingersoll & Rooney Attorneys Selected as Pennsylvania Super Lawyers
May 28, 2008 Choice of Law in Kentucky
1999 Representing the Corporate Criminal - Special Problems and Ethical Considerations
1992 Professional Responsibility in the Civil Rules
1992 Environmental Ethics
1991 Affiliations Kentucky Bar Association Fayette County Bar Association Former trustee, Eastern Mineral Law Foundation Past board member, Public Advocacy Commission Past special justice, past member of the Advisory Committee for revision of appellate sections of the Kentucky Civil Rules, Kentucky Supreme Court Allegheny County Bar Association Pennsylvania Bar Association | 
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