John Taylor

John L. Taylor, Jr. is the President of the firm. He is chairman of the firm's Business Litigation and Dispute Resolution practice group, which is the largest practice group in the firm. John obtained his law degree from Emory University in 1971, where he was an Executive Editor of the Journal of Public Law (now Emory Law Journal). He started his legal career as a Captain in the Office of the Staff Judge Advocate, United States Marine Corps, where he served from 1972 through 1975. Following his service in the Marine Corps, John returned to Atlanta and became a member of what is now Troutman & Sanders, a general practice law firm in Atlanta. He and two of his colleagues, Tom Chorey and Otto Feil, founded the firm that would become Chorey, Taylor & Feil. John has extensive experience as a courtroom lawyer, and represents multi-national and domestic entities. He is a member of the Bars of the State of Georgia, numerous United States District Courts and Courts of Appeals, and the United States Supreme Court. John has represented clients in cases in a number of states and many state and federal courts. He successfully represented the petitioner before the United States Supreme Court in the case of James Beam Distillery v. Georgia, a case seeking refunds of excise taxes. In addition, he has appeared before numerous administrative agencies. John has appeared multiple times as a speaker at seminars on federal litigation practice, as well as alcohol beverage regulatory issues. John was listed as one of Georgia's top attorneys in general litigation in Georgia Super Lawyers (2007 and 2008) published by the Journal of Law and Politics and Atlanta Magazine. In addition to his practice in general litigation, John maintains his specialty in dealer/distributor relations. In addition to litigating disputes in this area, he counsels clients in regulated and non-regulated industries with respect to distribution systems, and the impact of state and federal law on the distribution process. John has served as distribution counsel to a number of domestic and foreign companies. John is also active in the firm's alcohol beverage practice, representing clients in federal, state and international matters concerning the licensing, taxation, distribution, advertising and marketing of alcoholic beverages. John has extensive experience representing primarily supplier and wholesaler-tier industry members in all aspects of alcohol beverage distribution. In addition to preparing and negotiating distribution contracts, John's litigation skills permit him to handle alcohol distributor and supplier terminations in states with and without alcohol beverage franchise laws. He has experience in litigating issues including wholesaler/supplier relations, rights to new products and brand extensions, approval/disapproval of changes in wholesaler and supplier ownership, as well as other significant distribution issues. John is a life-long citizen of Atlanta with strong ties to the community. He served on the Board of Trustees of his church, and also served as President of one of the largest and oldest civic associations in Atlanta. He was a member of the Board of Directors of the Atlanta Bar Association, and served as President of the Atlanta Council of Younger Lawyers.