John Bender is an award-winning and nationally recognized attorney who dedicates his practice to winning high-stakes legal disputes and serving as a trusted advisor to businesses, entrepreneurs, and boards navigating consequential legal, regulatory, and governance issues.
A trial-ready advocate in matters involving exposure of tens and hundreds of millions of dollars, John routinely prosecutes and defends high-stakes matters involving securities, breach of contract, partnership and shareholder disputes, corporate governance, claims of fraud embezzlement, unfair or deceptive practices or competition, class actions, franchising, real estate development, manufacturing and supply chains, and disputes over trade secrets and other forms of intellectual property. John's work has been covered in major news publications such as TIME Magazine, The Wall Street Journal, Bloomberg, and The Seattle Times.
In 2025, John was awarded the Washington Defense Trial Lawyers Association's Outstanding Plaintiff's Trial Lawyer of the Year Award. Benchmark Litigation named him one of "the best and brightest litigators under 40 in the US" in back-to-back years (2024–2025). John has consistently been recognized as a leading lawyer in Lawdragon 500 X – The Next Generation (2026), Best Lawyers: Ones to Watch® in America (2021–2026), and the Washington Rising Stars list (2017–2026).
John is a recognized leader and advisor at the forefront of the intersection of emerging technologies and regulated industries such as digital assets, artificial intelligence, and financial services. John serves on the board of directors for the Washington Technology Industry Association. He is an advisory board member of Northwest Quantum Nexus. He is a member of WTIA's Cascadia Blockchain Council and served on the Washington blockchain workgroup sponsored by the Washington State Department of Commerce. He is a past volunteer and speaker for the City of Seattle's New Citizen Campaign. He is a past board member and chair of the WSBA's Mandatory Continuing Legal Education Board. He sits on King County's judicial conferencing and judicial officers survey committees.
John received a B.A. from Seattle University, a J.D. from the University of Washington, and an LL.M. from the University of California, Berkeley.