Attorneys

John Gresham began his law practice in Charlotte in 1976 following two years of service as a law clerk for United States District Court Judge James B. McMillan in Charlotte. He was a partner in the firm of Ferguson Stein Chambers Gresham & Sumter, PA, until 2010.

John's practice areas are employment litigation and negotiation, public employee rights, constitutional law, general civil litigation, appellate practice, and personal injury. He has been recognized by his peers for his work in employment and civil rights litigation and has been listed in Best Lawyers in America for over a decade in the areas of First Amendment and employment litigation. He has been annually recognized by his peers as a Super Lawyer in employment litigation and labor law, as well as a member of the Legal Elite by Business North Carolina. He continues to hold the AV Martindale–Hubbell rating first awarded over twenty years ago.

John graduated from Davidson College and Boston University School of Law, where he won the Bigelow Prize for greatest potential for scholarship and teaching, and published a note in the Boston University Law Review on the employment rights of veterans. He has taught employment law and civil rights litigation at the Vermont Law School and Campbell Law School.

John's noted cases include Corum v. University of North Carolina, where the North Carolina Supreme Court found that an individual remedy exists under the North Carolina State Constitution for a violation of state constitutional rights. John also successfully argued Reed v. United Transportation Union in the United States Supreme Court, where, by an 8-1 decision, the Supreme Court expanded the time period in which union members could sue for violation of their rights.

Known to his colleagues as "Gresham," John's clients, from college professors, to bank executives, truck drivers, teachers, police officers, waitresses, and other working folks, have received the legal assistance they needed and a fair resolution of their claims.

John has served as president of the Mecklenburg County Bar Foundation, and as a member of the Mecklenburg County Bar Board of Directors. He has also served as Vice Chairman of the North Carolina Bar Association Education Law Section Council as a result of his career-long representation of public school teachers and UNC employees. In May of 2006, John received the Distinguished Service Award from the Education Law Section. He has served on numerous bar committees including the Appellate Rules Study Committee and the Mecklenburg County Grievance Committee.

Outside of his practice John has served as the president of the Dilworth Community Development Association and as a member of the Board of Dance Charlotte. He now serves as a board member for the Council for Children's Rights. For a number of years he also coached teams in Dilworth Little League and Charlotte Junior Soccer.