John F. Finnegan III

PARTNER | MCLEAN, VA
(703) 749-1000

John F. Finnegan III is a partner at Watt Tieder’s McLean, Virginia office, focusing his practice on construction and commercial litigation, government contracts and suretyship law.  John is an experienced litigator who has obtained successful outcomes for his clients through negotiation, motion practice, and trial.

John represents a range of stakeholders in the construction industry, including contractors and sureties, in federal and state court as well as before administrative boards.  Significantly, John has gained successful trial experience through his representation of clients at several trials before the Armed Services Board of Contract Appeals.

Prior to joining Watt Tieder, John practiced at a New Jersey-based law firm, where he litigated commercial and employment disputes, represented higher education institutions, and conducted internal investigations.  John also served consecutive clerkships for: (i) the Hon. Michael A. Hammer, U.S. Magistrate Judge, District of New Jersey; and (ii) the Hon. Dorothea O’C. Wefing, Acting Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey.

John graduated cum laude from Seton Hall University School of Law, where, among other distinctions, he was an editor of the Seton Hall Law Review, completed an externship at the U.S. Attorney’s Office, District of New Jersey, and clerked in the legal department at Valley National Bank.

Honors & Awards

  • Super Lawyers, Construction Litigation Rising Star (VA) – 2021
  • Super Lawyers, Rising Star (NJ) – 2018

Speaking Engagements & Publications

  • Co-Author: “Look Up And Look Out: Increased Antitrust Enforcement Of Horizontal No-Poach Agreements Signals Heightened Scrutiny Of Vertical Agreements May Be Next,” Watt Tieder Newsletter, Summer 2022; re-published in blog format by ConsensusDocs (November 2022).
  • Author: “KISS: Keep It Simple, SBA — Unifying the SBA’s Mentor-Protégé Programs,” Watt Tieder Newsletter, Fall 2018.

Areas of Practice

  • Construction
  • Commercial Litigation
  • Government Contracts
  • Surety

Education

  • Seton Hall University School of Law, J.D., cum laude, 2011
    • Editor, Seton Hall Law Review
    • Co-Founder and Managing Editor, The Cross Examiner
  • Boston College, B.A., International Studies, cum laude, 2007

Clerkships

  • Honorable Michael A. Hammer, U.S. Magistrate Judge, District of New Jersey
  • Honorable Dorothea O’C. Wefing, Acting Associate Justice of the Supreme Court of New Jersey

Bar Admissions

  • Virginia
  • District of Columbia
  • New Jersey
  • New York

Court Admissions

  • U.S. Court of Appeals, 3rd Circuit
  • U.S. District Court for the Eastern District of Virginia
  • U.S. District Court for the Western District of Virginia
  • U.S. Court of Federal Claims
  • U.S. District Court for the District of New Jersey