John Bender is a partner in the firm's Commercial Disputes and White Collar Defense and Investigations practice groups. Recognized as one of the best litigators under 40 in the US by Benchmark Litigation, John represents public and private companies and entrepreneurs in cases involving exposure in the tens and hundreds of millions of dollars in high stakes commercial litigation and investigations.
John prosecutes and defends high-profile and bet-the-company matters involving securities, breach of contract, partnership and shareholder disputes, corporate governance, claims of fraud and embezzlement, franchising, trade secrets, and emerging technologies, including blockchain, digital assets, and artificial intelligence. John also defends companies and individuals in matters involving regulatory agencies such as DFI, SEC, and state attorneys general. He also handles matters involving various forms of reputational harm.
In 2024, Benchmark Litigation named John to its "40 & Under List...the guide to the best and brightest litigators under 40 in the US." He has been selected to the Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® every year since 2021. John has also been named to the Washington Rising Stars list in business litigation every year since 2017.
As a lawyer with experience at the intersection of US law and emerging technologies such as blockchain, digital assets, and AI, John frequently speaks and provides legal commentary and analysis covering these emerging areas; his cases have been featured in major publications, including TIME Magazine.
John also has substantial expertise in complex venture capital and private equity litigation, including cases involving claims of investment fraud and Ponzi scheme litigation, in state, federal, and bankruptcy courts. In particular, John represented major stakeholders in two of the largest cases of alleged investment fraud of record in Pacific Northwest history, in which creditors asserted over US$500 million in total losses. John served as court-appointed “Special Counsel” and lead trial lawyer in iCap Equity’s insolvency proceedings in which a federal court found that the enterprise operated a US$250+ million Ponzi scheme.
John has a substantial record of thought leadership and pro bono service. He is a member of the Steering Committee for the Washington Technology Industry Association's Cascadia Blockchain Council. He is an Advisory Board Member of the WTIA’s Advanced Technology Advisory Board. He served as a member of the Washington Blockchain Workgroup sponsored by the Washington State Department of Commerce. He was appointed to the Washington State Bar Association’s Legal Technology Task Force. He is a past volunteer and speaker for the City of Seattle's New Citizen Campaign. He is also a past member and chair of the Washington State Bar Association's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board.
John received a B.A. from Seattle University, a J.D. from University of Washington, and an LL.M. from the University of California, Berkeley.
- Listed in Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America for Commercial Litigation and Litigation - Securities, 2021-2025
- Named to Washington’s Rising Stars list for Business Litigation since 2017
- Named to Benchmark Litigation’s “40 & Under List” in West Washington, 2024
- Federal Bar Association of the Western District of Washington
- Washington State Bar Association
- Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board, 2017-2019
- Chair, 2018-2019
- King County Bar Association, Judiciary and Litigation Committee, 2018-2020
- WTIA Cascadia Blockchain Council, Steering Committee, 2023-present
- Panelist, Decoding 2025: Navigating New Regulations, Operators Guild & K&L Gates, 2025
- Panelist, The Complex World of Ponzi Litigation: Navigating Ponzi Scheme Adjudication in Insolvency Proceedings, 38th Annual Northwest Bankruptcy Institute, 2025
- Panelist, "Practical Business and Legal Implications of AI," The Rainier Club, Club Events, 2025
- Speaker, World Affairs Council, frequent speaker to World Affairs Council-sponsored foreign delegations regarding FinTech, artificial intelligence, state and federal regulatory oversight of financial services and emerging technologies, 2024-present
- Speaker, "2024 Cryptocurrency, Digital Assets, and State and Federal Securities Laws," CLE Presentation, Faculty, King County Bar Association, 2024
- Speaker, Transatlantic Lecture Series: Blockchain, Cryptocurrency, Smart Contracts: EU & US Approaches to Regulation, KU Leuven and America Europe Fund, 2023
- Speaker, "Faculty, Likely to go viral: How COVID-19 will encourage Securities Act claims," CLE Presentation, King County Bar Association, 2020
- "Private equity and venture capital litigation on the rise: An interview with John Bender of K&L Gates," Puget Sound Business Journal, 5 May 2025
- State Crypto Regulation: Competing Priorities Shaping Different Outcomes, 12 Seattle J. of Technology, Environmental & Innovative Law, 165, 2022
- Contributing Author, American Bar Association’s Franchise Deskbook: Selected State Laws, Commentary, and Annotations, Third Edition, 2019
- Washington Supreme Court Review: The Securities Act of Washington Protects the Public, Rely On It, King County Bar Bulletin, December 2019
- Delaware Court Makes it Easier for Duped Shareholders to Sue, Today’s General Counsel Magazine, 2016
- Reexamination of Direct-Derivative Distinction Under Tooley for Common Law ‘Holder Claims,’ American Bar Association, Section of Litigation, Commercial and Business Litigation Committee Newsletter, 2016
- The NLRB’s Joint Employer Standard and the Case for Preserving the Formalities of Business Format Franchising, 35 Franchise L.J. 209, 2015
- Blurred Lines in Small Business; Disagreements to Legal Disputes, Partnership and Shareholder Disputes from Start to Finish, National Business Institute, 2014
- Quoted, "ATM investment promoter Dave Zook also ledLancaster investors to Texas Ponzi scheme," Lancaster Online, 22 May 2025
- Quoted, “Creditors Get Ponzi Finding In Wash. Bankruptcy Trial,” Law360, 28 October 2024
- Quoted, “Judge rules WA real estate investment firm ran Ponzi scheme," The Seattle Times, 18 October 2024
- Quoted, "WA bank sued over loans to investors in alleged Ponzi scheme," The Seattle Times, 11 September 2024
- Quoted, "Water Vending Machine Maker's Creditors Seek to Force Business Into Bankruptcy," WSJ, 29 August 2024
- Quoted, "Investors in Everett firm claim it was a Ponzi scheme," The Seattle Times, 26 July 2024
- Quoted, "FBI is investigating Eastside real estate firm iCap, lawyers say," The Seattle Times, 26 March 2024
- Quoted, "How Logan Paul’s Crypto Empire Fell Apart," TIME, 3 February 2023
- Quoted, "Bellevue real estate investment firm faces bankruptcy, fraud allegations," The Seattle Times, 25 October 2023