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As a business-focused legal advisor and litigator at Ice Miller, John strives to help clients solve financial problems. John works with clients on UCC issues, loans, workouts and other financial transactions and frequently represents clients in debtor/creditor disputes, commercial and bankruptcy litigation and other insolvency matters. John is a member of the Firm's Finance and Bankruptcy and Financial Restructuring Practice Groups, and he frequently works cross-functionally with other teams, including Ice Miller's Litigation, Business, Public Finance, Real Estate, and Government Benefit Plans Groups.

Prior to joining Ice Miller, John clerked for two federal bankruptcy judges. He served for five years as a law clerk to the Honorable Judge Hannah L. Blumenstiel in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Northern District of California and for more than two years as a law clerk to the Honorable Judge Charles M. Caldwell in the United States Bankruptcy Court for the Southern District of Ohio. While clerking, John researched, briefed and drafted orders and opinions for hundreds of contested matters and adversary proceedings. Much of John's work involved complex business transactions, including the sale or restructuring of tech companies, commercial property ventures, health care facilities and retail chains.

Before his time at the federal judiciary, John worked in private practice representing clients in a variety of matters, including bankruptcy, civil litigation, foreclosure defense and mediation, municipal law and business planning.

John received his juris doctor from Capital University Law School in 2009, where he graduated valedictorian. John focused his coursework on corporate law, earning a certificate of concentration in publicly held companies and small business entities. During law school, John served as associate editor of The Capital University Law Review and worked as a legal intern in a variety of settings, including the taxation section of the Ohio Attorney General's Office and Nationwide Mutual Insurance Company's office of general counsel, and as an extern for the Honorable Judge Gregory L. Frost. Prior to law school, John received his Bachelor of Science in computer and information sciences from The Ohio State University, where he graduated magna cum laude with honors in the arts and sciences.

John was recently named to the 2017 class of the National Conference of Bankruptcy Judges' Next Generation Program at the NCBJ Annual Meeting and currently serves on the leadership team of the American Bankruptcy Institute's Litigation Committee.

In their free time, John and his wife Jennifer enjoy running, hiking, cooking, volunteering, traveling and spending as much time as possible with their baby daughter. A former programmer, John also stays up-to-date on the latest gadgets and technology.
Reported and Representative Cases
  • Represented the Official Committee of Unsecured Creditors (representing the interests of thousands of customers and creditors of the bankrupt payroll processing company) in a massive check kiting scheme that involved multiple national banks, hundreds of millions of dollars in kiting and asserted bank overdraft liabilities exceeding $142 million. We successfully obtained a settlement of certain key claims in the case, which resulted in the confirmation of a plan of reorganization with a significant anticipated distribution to unsecured creditors.
  • Represented the primary trade creditor and chair of the unsecured creditors committee in the bankruptcy case of a restaurant chain in Michigan and surrounding states.  The case concluded in a sale, which included a significant recovery for our client and meaningful post-confirmation protection for our client's ongoing relationship with the buyer.  
  • Represented the primary trade creditor and unsecured creditor committee member in the bankruptcy case of a national Italian restaurant chain. The case resulted in a sale of the business and a significant recovery for our client and meaningful post-confirmation protection for our client's ongoing relationship with the buyer.
  • Represented the administrative agent with respect to outstanding term loans in the complex chapter 11 bankruptcy cases filed by Murray Energy Holdings Co. and ninety-eight affiliated entities, along with the prosecution of an associated adversary proceeding, which resulted in the following reported decision: Black Diamond Commercial Finance, L.L.C. v. Murray Energy Corp. (In re Murray Energy Holdings Co., 616 B.R. 84 (Bankr. S.D. Ohio 2020) (granting, in part, and denying, in part, defendants’ motions to dismiss).
  • Represented the lender in a complex agricultural foreclosure and receivership action that involved approximately 730 acres of farmland, farm equipment and machinery, and a grain elevator property.  We obtained judgment in our favor, entry of an order appointing a receiver, and ultimately a significant recovery for our client.
  • Represented lender in dispute with borrower and tenant of borrower, including issues related to tenant's claimed continued right to occupancy. Following a four day bench trial in July 2018, the court issued a decision in favor of our client on all issues.
Firm Publications
News
Blog Posts
Published In
Speaking Engagements
  • "What You Need to Know about Recent Changes to the Bankruptcy Code and Their Impact on Your Business as a Supplier," National Association of Credit Management - CFDD Portland, May 2021
  • "Small Business Bankruptcy in the COVID-19 Era," Ohio State University Restructuring Series, December 2020
  • "Chapter 11, Subpart V, and You," Columbus Bar Association Bankruptcy Law Institute, November 2020
  • "The Impact of Bankruptcy on the Pursuit of Property Taxes," Ohio Township Association Winter Law Directors' Group Meeting, December 2019
  • "When Good Customers (or Suppliers or Vendors) Go Bad, Minimizing the Impact of Their Financial Distress on Your Business," Ice Miller In-House Counsel Year-End Seminar, December 2018
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