A respected relationship builder, John leverages more than three decades of in-house counsel experience at a leading brewery to help Food Systems clients.
After beginning his career in private practice assisting clients with complex civil business litigation, John spent more than 30 years as a recognized leader in alcohol beverage law as Associate General Counsel for Anheuser-Busch, Anheuser Busch InBev and Anheuser Busch Companies, LLC, where he won Missouri Lawyer Media's In-House Counsel Award. In this legal leadership role, John built long-term collaborative relationships with three-tier route-to-market collaborators – suppliers, wholesalers and retailers – as well as state regulators and other governing agencies. John regularly directed high-level regulatory and transactional matters for the iconic company including:
- Branding, advertising, marketing, promotional and trade practice state-by-state compliance
- Wholesaler and distribution agreements
- Supplier-wholesaler contract litigation, including wholesaler terminations
- Antitrust issues, including pricing, before government and competitors
- Merger & acquisition due diligence
John is uniquely situated to identify trends throughout the Food Systems industry, helping clients navigate a range of compliance issues and assisting them to plan ahead while preparing agreements. Clients appreciate his familiarity with alcohol regulations and his ability to help them apply that familiarity from coast to coast. He enjoys helping clients avoid challenging legal situations by putting optimal strategies and solutions in place to avoid problems.