A conversation with John F. “Jack” Gross

In his legal practice, he counsels businesses of all sizes on general corporate matters ranging from business formations, purchases and sales to mergers, acquisitions, privacy, intellectual property, succession planning and more. He also represents commercial and individual clients in purchasing and selling residential and commercial real estate.

A Lehigh Valley native and graduate of Allen High School, he earned a bachelor’s degree from Muhlenberg College and a law degree at Villanova University School of Law.

He started at Gross McGinley in 1999, became a partner in 2007 and became an equity partner in 2010. He was elected managing partner in 2018.

Outside of work he enjoys traveling with his family. He also teaches a course on media law and the First Amendment at Muhlenberg College and is involved in many nonprofits.

LVB: What have been some of Gross McGinley LLP’s biggest challenges and opportunities?

Jack Gross: The enormous growth in the Lehigh Valley and surrounding areas has offered a wonderful opportunity for us to have new business and individual clients seek our services. As a regional, full-service law firm, we are able to handle all aspects of our clients’ legal needs without them needing to hire large and more costly firms in Philadelphia or New York. Headquartered in the Lehigh Valley, we also are able to attract top-notch talent without the high cost of living in larger metropolitan areas. This allows us to do the highest-caliber work at a much lower cost to our clients.

Being in business for more than 40 years, Gross McGinley has maintained a reputation of trust and integrity. As with all businesses, challenges still exist. In recent years, we have been addressing our staffing as senior attorneys retire or move on. Fortunately, we have been able to promote several new partners and bring on five new attorneys in the last year to ensure we can continue to offer the best service to our clients.

LVB: How does Gross McGinley LLP directly stimulate the local economy? How does it get involved with the local community?

Gross: We have more than 80 employees and partners, including 32 attorneys, working in our three regional offices. The dedication and hard work of the Gross McGinley team has been the key to our 43 years of success.

The firm has instilled a strong sense of pride in its attorneys and staff to serve the community in which they live and work. From planting trees in local parks and serving food to the homeless and working poor, to serving on the boards for over 20 nonprofit organizations, the firm fosters a deep connection to the community and a passion to serve.

LVB: What have been some of the most notable projects that you’ve completed on a local level? Do you work solely in the region, or do you expand into other markets nationally and/or globally?

Gross: My colleagues and I have had the opportunity to handle a variety of matters, from simple contracts and employment agreements to complex buyouts, mergers and acquisitions, real estate transactions and more. Most recently, we represented Rodale Inc. in its sale to Hearst. We also have a robust litigation department that provides valuable legal counsel to our business clients. For example, our commercial litigation team served as local counsel in a landmark trade secrets trial resulting in a $5.2 million judgement in favor of our client, the maker of a specialty food product.

LVB: What is your guiding philosophy as a business leader?

Gross: Within the firm, I am guided by a philosophy of communication being key. There are many big and small decisions that must be made as managing partner and I greatly appreciate and encourage input from my colleagues. Ultimately, not all decisions will be liked. But I find that your team will respect the decision-making process and the resulting resolutions when they have a voice and are informed of the decisions, directly.

LVB: If you could change one thing about your industry, what would it be?

Gross: It is frustrating when we as attorneys oftentimes are not consulted until there is a problem to fix. We try to encourage our clients to reach out to us when making critical decisions or purchases before there is a problem. We can usually provide valuable legal insight that can help mitigate risk and avoid problems, for far less cost.