Professional Experience

John is currently the Law Director for the City of Cleveland Heights, Ohio, which has historically been on the cutting edge of many municipal legal issues and he served as Law Director for the City of Aurora, Ohio for six years. He has represented numerous public entities—including municipalities, counties, housing authorities, nonprofit corporations, regional councils of government and insurance defense pools—throughout Ohio and has served as special counsel to those entities on nearly all aspects of public law.

In addition, John offers public clients over fifteen years' experience with cable television and telecommunications law. John has written numerous articles regarding cable television and telecommunications issues for municipal publications such as "The Urban Lawyer" and "Local Government Law Weekly", both published by the American Bar Association, as well as "Ohio Cities and Villages" magazine. A chapter on telecommunications, authored by John and other members of the Walter & Haverfield Telecommunications Practice Group appears in the book, "Privatizing Governmental Functions", published by Law Journal Press. He has also spoken on these issues to many municipal groups, including the National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Administrators (NATOA), the International Municipal Lawyers Association (IMLA) and its predecessor, the National Institute of Municipal Law Officers (NIMLO), the Ohio Municipal Attorney's Association (OMAA), the Ohio Municipal League (OML), the Mayors' Association of Ohio, and Kent State University's Elected Officials Program.

Walter & Haverfield LLP




AV Peer Review Rated

John has represented numerous public entities—including municipalities, counties, housing authorities, nonprofit corporations, regional councils of government and insurance defense pools—throughout Ohio and has served as special counsel to those entities on nearly all aspects of public law.

Areas Of Emphasis

Public Law

John's extensive public law experience includes:

  • Over 25 years experience as Law Director for both a developing community and a large inner ring suburb

  • Legal counsel to numerous cities, villages, townships, regional council of government and not-for-profit organizations on a wide range of issues including insurance defense pools, environmental, administration, land use, anti-trust, economic development, employment, civil rights, First Amendment, contracts, code enforcement and criminal prosecutions

Cable Television and Telecommunications

John's extensive work in the areas of cable television and telecommunications includes:

  • Negotiation of cable television franchise agreements
  • Cable television operator transfer authority
  • Enforcement of franchise agreements and federal regulations
  • Cable television rate regulation
  • Right-of-way regulation and right-of-way use agreements
  • Cable television customer service regulations
  • Wi-Fi and broadband over power line agreements
  • Institutional networks and telecommunications as a tool of economic development

Complex Litigation

  • Defense and prosecution of lawsuits in all courts with a particular emphasis on civil rights, contracts, land use, administrative appeals, anti-trust, employment, First Amendment and environmental

Professional & Community Associations

John is an active participant in numerous community associations. His professional involvement includes:

  • American Bar Association - Former Chair, Cable Television and Telecommunications subcommittee
  • Cuyahoga County Law Director's Association - Past President
  • Ohio Municipal Attorney's Association (OMAA)
  • International Municipal Attorney's Association (IMLA)
  • Ohio Chamber Orchestra - Former President
  • Conover Workshops Scholarship Fund -Former President
  • National Association of Telecommunications Officers and Advisors (NATOA)

Presentations

  • "New Technologies for Municipal Development", Annual Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association Conference, July 2005

  • "Current Issues in Telecommunications Affecting Ohio Municipalities and Right-of-Way Regulation", co-presented with William R. Hanna for the Ohio Municipal Attorney Association, May 13, 2005 Seminar

  • "Ohio's Sunshine Law & Council Rules of Procedure," Kent State University, February 3, 2004

  • “Telecommunications,” Lorman Education Services, September 10, 2003

  • “Cable Television Franchise Renewal Battles in the Heartland During the Last Three Years: The Tale of 10 Ohio Communities,” Annual Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association Conference, July 2003

  • “Right-of-Way Control,” Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association Seminar, May 9, 2003

  • “Telecommunications,” Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association Seminar, May 3, 2002

  • “The Legal Environment of Municipal Government,” Kent State University, February 13, 2002

  • “Telecommunications,” Ohio Municipal Attorneys Association Winter Seminar, December 14, 2001

Education

Case Western Reserve University, J.D. , 1972
Oberlin College, B.A. , 1967

Licensed to Practice

  • Ohio
  • U.S. Supreme Court
  • Federal district and appellate Courts

Awards & Recognitions

AV rated by Martindale-Hubbell

Articles by John H. Gibbon

April 2005 – Client Briefing on Cable & Telecommunications: Adelphia agrees to be purchased by Time Warner & Comcast

Winter 2004-2005 – Client Briefing on Cable & Telecommunications Law: Recent Developments

Fall 2004 – Client Briefing on Cable & Telecommunications Law: Recent Developments

Spring 2004 – Client Briefing on Cable & Telecommunications Law: Recent Developments

October 2003 – Recent Developments in Cable & Telecommunications Law

April 2002 – Municipal Home rule and the Public Right-of-Way

April 2002 – Cable Television Rates increasing Faster than the Rate of Inflation

March 2002 – Cable Franchise Fees May be Decreased Due to FCC Ruling

Areas of Practice

Cable and Telecommunications
Litigation Services
Municipal Law
Public Law
Public Sector Legal Services and Litigation
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