John Townsend Rich practices primarily in the areas of antitrust, administrative law, appellate and district court litigation, governmental relations (including compliance with the federal Lobbying Disclosure Act), and professional responsibility. He has written numerous appellate briefs in federal and state courts and in the Supreme Court, including numerous Supreme Court and court of appeals amicus briefs on issues related to civil commitment, discrimination and treatment of the disabled on behalf of various groups. In recent years, he has litigated two major Freedom of Information Act cases and filed amicus briefs in Alien Tort Statute cases against corporations. He has counseled U.S. corporations with operations abroad about suits under the Alien Tort Statute, potential liability under treaties and customary international law, and issues of state sovereign immunity and arbitration.

Mr. Rich sits on Goodwin Procter’s Ethics Advisory Committee and advises Goodwin Procter colleagues and other firms concerning their obligations under the rules of professional conduct, conflict of interest statutes, unauthorized practice rules, and laws governing the conduct of lobbyists.