He earned a degree in marine engineering at the U.S. Merchant Marine Academy and worked as an engineer for several years before returning to his Washington, D.C. birthplace and joining the U.S. Department of Commerce as a patent examiner. He was an attorney with the U.S. Department of Justice, admiralty and shipping section for two years, then moved to Tampa to practice with a large full-service firm. He joined Wagner, Vaughan & McLaughlin in 1976.

John's special area of practice is reflected in many of his professional activities, including leadership positions on admiralty and maritime law committees of both the American Bar Association and The Florida Bar and membership in the Maritime Law Association of the United States. He is also a diplomat of the Southeastern Admiralty Law Institute and co-author of local and state legal guides.

A sustaining member of the Association of Trial Lawyers of America and the Academy of Florida Trial Lawyers, he helped found Trial Lawyers for Public Justice, a national public interest law firm.

John is a frequent lecturer on automobile liability and insurance law at legal seminars.