John Bender2024-02-05T19:56:25+00:00

John Bender

(206) 652-8659

Professional Associations

  • Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington
  • Washington State Bar Association
    Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board, 2017-2019; Chair, 2018-2019

  • King County Bar Association
    Judiciary and Litigation Committee, 2018-present

  • WTIA Cascadia Blockchain Council
    Steering Committee, 2023-present

Education

  • LL.M., UC Berkeley School of Law

  • J.D., University of Washington School of Law

  • B.A., Seattle University

John Bender

Admitted in Washington

John is a partner at Corr Cronin. Named a perennial “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers, he focuses his practice on high-stakes commercial and complex litigation and investigations. John has represented public and private companies in cases involving exposure in the tens and hundreds of millions of dollars, and is a go-to attorney for both clients and colleagues.

John frequently handles matters involving securities, breach of contract, partnership and shareholder disputes, corporate governance, claims of fraud and embezzlement, trade secrets, intellectual property and disputed rights to technology, FinTech, blockchain, cryptocurrencies and other digital assets. He handles matters involving regulatory agencies including DFI, SEC, and state attorneys general. He has also handled matters involving a variety of complex torts and reputational harm.

John has significant experience in complex securities fraud litigation in state, federal, and bankruptcy courts, including representing official and ad hoc creditors’ committees in bankruptcy.

As an attorney with significant experience at the intersection of cryptocurrencies, DeFi, and U.S. law, John frequently provides legal commentary and analysis in this emerging area; his analysis has been featured in major publications including Time Magazine.

John has been named to Best Lawyers in America’s “Ones to Watch” List every year since 2021. He has been named a “Rising Star” by Super Lawyers in Business Litigation in Washington every year since 2017.

John has a substantial record of leadership and pro bono service. He is a member of the Steering Committee for the Washington Technology Industry Association’s Cascadia Blockchain Council. He served as a volunteer and speaker for the City of Seattle’s New Citizen Campaign in 2016 and 2017. He also served as chair of the Washington State Bar Association’s Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board, and supported the Board’s first mandatory anti-bias, anti-discrimination, and technology legal education proposal to the state’s supreme court.

John received a bachelor’s degree from Seattle University, a J.D. from University of Washington, and a LL.M. from University of California at Berkeley.

Featured Cases

Presentations and Publications

  • State Crypto Regulation: Competing Priorities Shaping Different Outcomes, 12 Seattle J. of Tech. Envtl. & Innov. L. 165 (2022).

  • Faculty, Likely to go viral: How COVID-19 will encourage Securities Act claims, CLE Presentation, King County Bar Association (2020).

  • Contributing Author, American Bar Association’s Franchise Deskbook: Selected State Laws, Commentary, and Annotations, Third Edition (2019).

  • Washington Supreme Court Review: The Securities Act of Washington Protects the Public, Rely On It, King County Bar Bulletin (December 2019).

  • Delaware Court Makes it Easier for Duped Shareholders to Sue, Today’s General Counsel Magazine (2016).

  • Reexamination of Direct-Derivative Distinction Under Tooley for Common Law ‘Holder Claims,’ American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, Commercial and Business Litigation Committee Newsletter (2016).

  • The NLRB’s Joint Employer Standard and the Case for Preserving the Formalities of Business Format Franchising, 35 Franchise L.J. 209 (2015).

  • Blurred Lines in Small Business; Disagreements to Legal Disputes, Partnership and Shareholder Disputes from Start to Finish, National Business Institute (2014).

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