John R. McGinley, Jr.

Overview

Jack McGinley is a trial attorney with more than 45 years of legal experience. He concentrates his practice in corporate, business, real estate, and professional liability matters. He also has significant experience in handling matters on behalf of nonprofit organizations. 

Jack previously served in the public sector as an assistant district attorney of Allegheny County. He later co-founded the firm Grogan Graffam McGinley, P.C., where he practiced for more than 30 years before joining Eckert Seamans as an equity partner in 2002. Throughout his legal career, he has successfully tried numerous high-profile cases to verdict. He also chaired the Independent Regulatory Review Commission of Pennsylvania for more than 10 years and is a fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers and a member of the Academy of Trial Lawyers of Allegheny County.

Jack has complemented his legal career with various business interests and service to many nonprofit corporations. He is the former chair of Rockwood Casualty Insurance Company and the current chair and president of Ballymoney Real Estate Services, a real estate development and management company. He has also served as a director of the Pittsburgh Steelers Football Club and Wilson McGinley Inc., a wholesale distributor of beer and malt beverages. Jack currently serves as chair of Duquesne University’s board of directors, an emeritus trustee at St. Bonaventure University (where he also previously chaired the board of trustees), chair of the Rita McGinley Foundation, and chair of The Pittsburgh Foundation. He is the former board chair of Pittsburgh Mercy Hospital, which he led through its joiner with UPMC.

Representative Matters

• Represented major health system in liquidation—utilizing a team of firm attorneys to address employment law; employee benefits, including pension plan terminations; dissolution of the corporations through which the health system operated; resolution of class actions; and bankruptcy and creditors’ rights issues—to ensure that the assets were promptly liquidated and that creditor claims against these assets were promptly processed. Client chose to dissolve under the supervision of the courts pursuant to Pennsylvania’s Nonprofit Law, rather than by filing for bankruptcy, becoming one of the largest nonprofit corporate dissolutions in the history of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas Orphans’ Court. The lack of precedent required great flexibility from the Court and the attorneys in formulating a procedure that followed the Orphans’ Court rules, yet took into account the size and complexity of the case.
• Handled litigation work regarding the politically-charged closure of a major hospital in Pittsburgh. The client prevailed in a number of suits that were filed in an attempt to stop the closure.
• Resolved cases with the Internal Revenue Service concerning federal estate taxes.
• Successfully represented plaintiff in matter pertaining to a major gas explosion.
• Represented major mass media corporation in litigation regarding liabilities in connection with net leases.
• Appointed by St. Bonaventure University to lead panel on review of its basketball program following forfeiture of six victories after the National Collegiate Athletic Association declared one of its players ineligible on academic grounds, in addition to two additional forfeitures and the resignation of the university’s president.