Past President - John C. Gillespie

Mr. Gillespie is chair of Parker McCay's Municipal and Government Department. He has represented public entities, as well as land use applicants, for 37 years. He regularly represents national clients in processing development applications before local land use boards and has lectured extensively on matters of interest to municipalities and developers. He also represents dozens of public entities in defending class action lawsuits, police liability claims, constitutional law challenges, and various other actions against municipalities and counties.

Mr. Gillespie is the 2019 recipient of the Burlington County Professional Lawyer of the Year Award, from the Commission on Professionalism; the 2015 recipient of the Martin L. Haines Award, the Burlington County Bar Association’s highest honor; the 2011 recipient of the Michael A. Pane Award, given by the New Jersey State League of Municipalities and NJILGA; and the 2010 recipient of the Fred G. Stickel Award issued by NJILGA for excellence in local government law and the highest commitment to ethics. He is also among the first-ever recipients of the International Municipal Lawyers Association (“IMLA”) Amicus Service Award, which recognizes lawyers who have done exemplary work to protect and advance local government interests; and in September of 2020 received the IMLA’s Longevity of Service to a Community Award. In addition, Mr. Gillespie is a past recipient of the prestigious Robert W. Criscuolo Award, presented annually by the Burlington County Bar Association to a young attorney committed to the legal profession and the community

He is admitted to practice law in New Jersey; the U.S. Supreme Court; the U.S. Court of Appeals, Third Circuit; the U.S. District Court, District of New Jersey; and the U.S. District Court, Southern District of New York. He received his law degree in 1980 from Villanova University School of Law and his bachelor's degree in 1977 from Trinity College in Hartford, CT.  Mr. Gillespie is a member of the Board of Trustees of the Virtua Health Foundation; past Chair of the Board of Trustees for Samaritan Healthcare & Hospice, Inc.; and past Chair of the Board of the Crossroads Runaway Programs, Inc. He is also the founding Trustee of the Church of St. Isaac Jogues Roman Catholic Church, in Evesham, NJ.