John McGuiness came to Groom because he wanted to practice employee benefits law with like-minded experts in the field.  But there was also what he sees when he looks out his office window—Capitol Hill and the White House.  “I am very interested in the political process,” he says.  “I enjoy tracking the legislative proposals in the benefits area that are constantly being considered by the Congress and the Executive Branch.” 

When he surveys the legislative landscape, he concentrates his attention on the rapidly evolving area of executive compensation, using his background in accounting (he was a CPA for Price Waterhouse before going to law school) and his expertise in tax and securities law to stay up to speed on developments in the field.  He has also worked extensively on tax-qualified retirement plans as well as mergers and acquisitions.  John and has written articles and spoken on compensation issues arising from the American Jobs Creation Act, Sarbanes-Oxley, and EGTRRA, and is listed in the Chambers USA guide.

Even though he enjoys the intellectual challenges posed by the intricate rules related to executive compensation, John also recognizes that his is no Ivory Tower area of specialization.  “Shareholders, company executives, Congress, regulators, and the media have all become interested in executive compensation,” he says, pointing to the nearly constant flow of new legislation and cases in the field—as well as the coverage of it in the press.  “But not many people understand its complexities or its implications for business.”

So while John occasionally allows himself to look out his window and daydream of Mr. Smith going to Washington, when he returns to his desk it’s with a less gauzy purpose in mind: