John W. Goldsborough

John W. Goldsborough, Esquire, is our federal litigation and appellate counsel in the Berwyn office.  An attorney for the last 27 years, John began his career as a certified public high-school English teacher.  From a family of public educators, he has a tremendous passion for education and disability advocacy, in addition to significant past federal litigation experience.  John and his family have been active in disability advocacy for several years and are well connected with and involved in this community.  He also has extended family in the Deaf community.  Before joining McAndrews Law Offices, John served as a prosecutor in the Federal Litigation Unit of the Philadelphia District Attorney’s Office for over 19 years.  John handled approximately 400 habeas cases, including numerous hearings and oral arguments, and briefed over 40 appeals in the United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit, 18 of which he argued, with overwhelming success.  Prior to that, he held clerkships with the Pennsylvania Superior Court and Philadelphia Court of Common Pleas, and practiced in family law, mental health and child dependency.  John has been a singer since childhood and a paid baritone since shortly after college, and he is actively involved in several prominent choirs and choruses in the Philadelphia area.  John is well known for his strong work ethic, excellent writing and appellate advocacy, superior legal skills, resonant baritone voice, kindness, and collegiality.  He, his wife, and their two children live in the Mount Airy neighborhood of Philadelphia.

Education:

• J.D., Villanova University School of Law, 1994
• M.A., Secondary English Education, Teachers College, Columbia University, 1989 (Mellon Fellow in Teaching; studied primarily with Lucy McCormick Calkins)
• B.A., Honors, Honors Program, Swarthmore College, 1988 (English Literature major, with minors in Sociology/Anthropology and Religion; Lisa P. Alpert ’81 Scholar; Lang Summer Scholar)
• Lower Merion High School, 1984

 

Professional Organizations, Honors and Affiliations:

• Pennsylvania Bar Association
• Philadelphia Bar Association
• Federal Bar Association
• American Bar Association
• Third Circuit Bar Association
• Phi Delta Kappa, professional educators’ association
• Council of Parent Attorneys and Advocates
• Council for Exceptional Children
• Lawyers’ Club of Philadelphia
• Miles for Migraine – advocate and regular speaker
• CASA Philadelphia – regular presenter
• Member, St. Andrew’s Society of Philadelphia
• Core Singer, Festival Choir, St. John’s Church (Lutheran), Skippack Pike, Blue Bell
• Former Core Singer, The Philadelphia Chorus, Raquel Garcia, conductor
• Former Core Singer, Choir, Church of the Holy Trinity (Episcopal), Rittenhouse Square, Philadelphia
• Former Singer and Board Member, Mendelssohn Club of Philadelphia, 1983-1988, 1990-2000; Chair of Bylaws Revision Committee
• Former Member, Board of Advisors, Manor College Paralegal Program

 

Bar Admissions:

• United States Supreme Court
• United States Court of Appeals for the Third Circuit
• United States District Court for the Eastern District of Pennsylvania
• United States District Court for the Middle District of Pennsylvania
• United States District Court for the Western District of Pennsylvania
• United States District Court for the District of New Jersey
• Commonwealth of Pennsylvania
• State of New Jersey

 

Practice Areas:

• Federal Litigation
• Appeals
• Special Education Law