John Buckley's practice focuses on the representation of individuals and entities in complex adversarial matters and in the trial of challenging cases.  He has tried many cases to verdict in jury and bench trials in federal and state courts.  He has handled multiple international and domestic arbitrations and argued many appeals in both federal circuit courts and in state supreme and intermediate courts.

Mr. Buckley is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers.  Membership in the College is extended by invitation only, after careful investigation, to those experienced trial attorneys who have mastered the art of advocacy and whose professional careers have been marked by the highest ethical conduct, professionalism and collegiality.  Membership can be no more than 1% of the total lawyers in any state.

Mr. Buckley has also been recognized in peer-selection surveys such as Washington, D.C. Super Lawyers (2007-08) in the area of business litigation and in Euromoney’s Guide to the World’s Leading Experts in Commercial Arbitration (2006-08). 

• In the field of complex civil litigation, Mr. Buckley has defended corporations, officers and individuals in a broad range of substantive areas, including securities laws, ERISA, RICO, fiduciary duty, patents, antitrust, employment, torts, breach of contract, election law, fraud, and class actions.  His cases have involved business transactions and issues as diverse as insurance coverage, commodities trading, mortgage-backed securities, collateralized debt obligations, telecommunications, oil refining, and electricity.

• In the field of investigations and criminal defense, Mr. Buckley has represented senior corporate officers and directors in internal corporate investigations, grand jury investigations, and government regulatory investigations, involving matters such as stock option backdating and financial reporting.  He has also defended individuals and entities in criminal cases.   

• In the field of professional liability, Mr. Buckley has represented law firms against  allegations of malpractice, breach of fiduciary duty, ethical violations, fraud, conspiracy, and violations of the federal securities laws.

• In the field of international and domestic arbitration, Mr. Buckley has been lead counsel in multiple cases administered under ICC and AAA rules and in ad hoc arbitrations.  These cases have involved arbitral proceedings in countries throughout the world, including England, Switzerland, Germany and Canada as well as the United States.  He has been involved in confirmation and set aside proceedings, and was recently admitted and appeared as a foreign attorney before the Quebec Superior Court in the trial and argument of such matters.  Representative arbitration cases include:

• Successful representation of Kuwait corporation in an ICC arbitration, applying U.S. Government contract law, in a dispute involving supplying food to the U.S. Military in Kuwait and Iraq.

• Successful representation of Mauritius company in an ICC arbitration, sited in London and applying Indian law, involving breach of shareholders and purchase agreements relating to an Indian telecommunications company.

• Successful representation of a leading French company in an ICC arbitration, sited in Montreal, defending against a $600 million claim under a shareholders agreement relating to the ownership and operation of an oil refinery in Germany.

Long-Standing Clients:

Mr. Buckley has represented Georgetown University for more than thirty years in a broad array of matters, including cases involving civil rights, breach of contract, and torts.

Mr. Buckley has served as counsel to and advised the Girl Scout Council of the Nation’s Capital for more than twenty years.  In 2005 the Council presented Mr. Buckley with the Officers’ Award, its highest award, for service to the Council.

Mr. Buckley has represented Louis Dreyfus S.A.S. and various of its subsidiaries in multiple matters for more than fifteen years.

Education and Professional Background:

Mr. Buckley became a partner in 1981.  Prior to joining the firm in 1977, he served as Special Assistant to U.S. Attorney General Edward H. Levi, law clerk to Justice Lewis F. Powell, Jr., U.S. Supreme Court, and law clerk to Judge John Minor Wisdom, U.S. Court of Appeals for the Fifth Circuit.

Mr. Buckley earned his J.D. degree with honors from The University of Chicago, where he was elected to the Order of the Coif and served as Editor-in-Chief of The University of Chicago Law Review.  He earned his A.B. degree magna cum laude, Phi Beta Kappa from Georgetown University.

Admissions:

• District of Columbia
• State of New York
• Bars of the U.S. Supreme Court, United States Court of Appeals for the District of Columbia, Second, Third, Seventh and Eleventh Circuits; and U.S. District Courts for the District of Columbia and Maryland

Memberships:

• Section of Litigation, ABA
• International Bar Association (Committee on Arbitration and ADR)
• London Court of International Arbitration (North American Users’ Council)

Appointments:

• Visiting Committee, The University of Chicago Law School (2005 to present)
• Chair, Federal Legislation Committee, American College of Trial Lawyers (2008-09)
• Former Trustee, Board of Governors, Beauvoir, the National Cathedral Elementary School