John C. Grugan
Partner
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Overview
John C. Grugan is a litigation attorney in Holland & Knight's Philadelphia office and focuses his practice on defending clients in government investigations and complex litigation brought by the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), the U.S. Department of Justice (DOJ), the Consumer Financial Protection Bureau (CFPB), and state attorneys general. At Holland & Knight, he serves as the Philadelphia Litigation Practice Group Leader.
Mr. Grugan has substantial experience working with boards of directors, audit committees, special litigation committees and corporate management to direct corporate internal investigations. His experience includes numerous engagements in which he handled corporate investigations and related negotiations with the government, after which the government declined to prosecute or pursue litigation.
Mr. Grugan is often recognized for his work by industry publications, including Chambers USA for Litigation: Securities (Pennsylvania). In 2023, one client commented as follows:
"John is an enormously valuable strategic adviser. He is very smart, exceptionally accessible and most importantly, wise and practical."
– Chambers USA – America's Leading Lawyers for Business guide, 2023
As another client stated:
"John is very strategic and very well respected at the SEC and DOJ. I really like him, he's practical and smart."
– Chambers USA – America's Leading Lawyers for Business guide, 2024
Mr. Grugan also annually is listed in Benchmark Litigation as a National Litigation Star and is mentioned in The Legal 500.
In the community, Mr. Grugan chairs the boards of his alma mater, St. Joseph's Preparatory School, as well as Good360, the nation's second-largest nonprofit and the largest nonprofit that assists retailers in meeting their environmental, social and governance (ESG) commitments. He is a frequent lecturer and author on topics such as government investigations of financial services institutions and protecting corporate interests in internal investigations. Mr. Grugan also co-chairs the American Bar Association Business Law Section subcommittee on Corporate Compliance and Ethics.
Prior to joining Holland & Knight, Mr. Grugan worked as a litigation partner in the Philadelphia office of a national law firm. Additionally, he was a law clerk to the Honorable James McGirr Kelly of the U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania and served as a trial attorney in the DOJ's Honors Program, Civil Division.
Representative Experience
Credentials
- Temple University, Beasley School of Law, J.D., cum laude
- University of Pennsylvania, B.A.
- New Jersey
- Pennsylvania
- Utah
- U.S. District Court for the Central District of California
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of California
- U.S. District Court for the District of New Mexico
- U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey
- U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
- U.S. District Court for the Northern District of Texas
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Ninth Circuit
- U.S. Court of Appeals for the Tenth Circuit
- U.S. Supreme Court
- St. Joseph's Preparatory School, Board of Trustees, 2020-Present; Chair of the Board, 2022-Present
- Good360, Board of Directors, 2017-Present; Chair of the Board, 2022-Present
- Franklin Institute, Executive Corporate Board, 2019-Present
- Neighborhood Club of Bala Cynwyd, Past President, 2011-2012
- Temple Law Review, Editor-in-Chief
- Chambers USA – America's Leading Business Lawyers guide, Litigation: Securities, 2021-Present
- Benchmark Litigation, Litigation Star, Securities, White Collar Crime, 2021-Present
- The Legal 500 USA, Securities Litigation, 2022-Present
- The 25 Notable Attorneys of Pennsylvania, Attorney Intel, 2023
- Stand-out Lawyer, Thomson Reuters, 2023