John C. Browne's practice focuses on the prosecution of securities fraud class actions. He represents the firm’s institutional investor clients in jurisdictions throughout the country and has been a member of the trial teams of some of the most high-profile securities fraud class actions in history.
John co-led the federal securities class action lawsuit In re Wells Fargo & Company Securities Litigation, which reached a $1 billion settlement agreement on behalf of the firm’s clients and a class of investors with Wells Fargo & Co. If approved, the settlement will be among the top six U.S. securities class action settlements in the past decade and among the top 17 of all time. In addition, John was Lead Counsel in the In re Citigroup, Inc. Bond Action Litigation, which resulted in a $730 million cash recovery – the second largest recovery ever achieved for a class of purchasers of debt securities. It is also the second largest civil settlement arising out of the subprime meltdown and financial crisis. John was also a member of the team representing the New York State Common Retirement Fund in In re WorldCom, Inc. Securities Litigation, which culminated in a five-week trial against Arthur Andersen LLP and a recovery for investors of over $6.19 billion – one of the largest securities fraud recoveries in history.
Other notable litigations in which John served as Lead Counsel on behalf of shareholders include In re Refco Securities Litigation, which resulted in a $407 million settlement; In re SCANA Corp. Securities Litigation, which settled for $192.5 million, the largest securities class action settlement in the District of South Carolina history; In re BNY Mellon Foreign Exchange Securities Litigation, which settled for $180 million; Medina v. Clovis Oncology, where John represented an Israeli institutional investor and recovered $142 million in cash and stock on behalf of the class; In re Allergan Securities Litigation, which settled for $130 million in cash; In re ComScore, Inc. Securities Litigation, which settled for $110 million in cash and stock; In re State Street Corporation Securities Litigation, which settled for $60 million; and In re the Reserve Fund Securities and Derivative Litigation, which settled for more than $54 million.
John also represents the firm’s institutional investor clients in the appellate courts across the country, arguing appeals in the First Circuit, Second Circuit, Third Circuit and the Fifth Circuit, and obtaining appellate reversals in In re Ariad Securities Litigation (First Circuit), In re Green Mountain Coffee Roasters (Second Circuit), and In re Amedisys Securities Litigation (Fifth Circuit).
In recognition of his achievements and legal excellence, Chambers USA has ranked John as one of the top practitioners in the field for the New York Securities Litigation Plaintiff category, describing him as "a go-to litigator" and quoting market sources who describe him as "professional and courteous, while still being a fierce advocate for his clients." Law360 has twice named John a “Class Action MVP" (one of only four litigators selected nationally), Benchmark Litigation has recognized him as a "Litigation Star," and he was named a "Litigation Trailblazer" by The National Law Journal. He is regularly named to lists of leading plaintiff lawyers by Lawdragon, Legal 500, and Thomson Reuters' Super Lawyers.
Prior to joining BLB&G, John was an attorney at Latham & Watkins, where he had a wide range of experience in commercial litigation, including defending securities class actions, and representing major corporate clients in state and federal court litigations and arbitrations.
John has been a panelist at various continuing legal education programs offered by the American Law Institute ("ALI") and has authored and co-authored numerous articles relating to securities litigation.