JOHN KENNETH (鈥淜EN鈥�) FELTER has been a trial attorney for over forty-nine years and has tried numerous cases to conclusion in federal and state courts throughout the United States. He is Of Counsel in the Intellectual Property Group and Litigation Department in the Boston Office of Ropes & Gray LLP, one of the world鈥檚 premier law firms with over 1,500 attorneys in thirteen offices worldwide, which, in 2022, was named 鈥淟aw Firm of the Year鈥� by The American Lawyer , and ranked #1 on The American Lawyer鈥檚 A-List of elite firms. Mr. Felter focuses his trial practice in the areas of intellectual property and complex commercial litigation.
As a Visiting Professor, Mr. Felter teaches two sections of an upper level course in the Economics Department at Boston College, Applying Economic Theory in the Practice of Law. He leads tutorials in the Economics Department at Harvard College, for which he has been awarded eleven Certificates of Distinction in Teaching by the Office of Undergraduate Education, and is a member of the Teaching Faculty and a Trial Advisor in the Harvard Law School Introduction to Trial Advocacy.
Mr. Felter is a Fellow of the American College of Trial Lawyers, which is recognized as the preeminent organization of trial lawyers in North America, and has been selected to appear in The Best Lawyers in America , U.S. News Best Lawyers, Super Lawyers, Corporate Counsel Edition, Benchmark Litigation: The Definitive Guide to America鈥檚 Leading Litigation Firms & Attorneys, Super Lawyers, New England Edition, New England鈥檚 Best Lawyers, Massachusetts Super Lawyers, and Boston鈥檚 Best Lawyers.
Mr. Felter was selected as a Fellow (2016) and Senior Fellow (2017) in the Advanced Leadership Initiative at Harvard University. He was named as a Fellow (2016-2017) by the Massachusetts Access to Justice Commission and served for several years on its Revenue Enhancement Committee. Mr. Felter served on the Board of Directors for over thirty years and was elected and served on the Executive Committee and as Vice President (2013-2016) and President and Chairman (2017-18) of the Board of Directors of Greater Boston Legal Services, Inc., the oldest and largest legal services organization in New England. He was selected for inclusion in the Albert Nelson Marquis Who鈥檚 Who Lifetime Achievement publication.
Mr. Felter graduated Phi Beta Kappa and as a Scholar of the College with a joint B.A.-M.A. in Economics from Boston College and cum laude from Harvard Law School where he won the Ames Moot Court Competition and was a Finalist in the Williston Contract Competition.
Mr. Felter has written extensively on trial and litigation practice, including recently Model Jury Instructions: Patent Litigation (ABA Litigation Section, Second Edition (2023)) (Drafting Committee), Federal Claims Based on Land Use Regulation (ABA Litigation Section, Business and Commercial Litigation in Federal Courts, Fifth Edition (2022)), Preparing for Civil Trial in Massachusetts (Massachusetts Continuing Legal Education, Inc., Massachusetts Courtroom Advocacy, Fifth Edition (2023), and The Admissibility of Sampling Evidence to Prove Individual Damages in Class Actions, 59 Boston College Law Review 655 (2018) (co-author). He was selected Outstanding Subcommittee Chair (2013-2014) for his work as Chair and Newsletter Author and Editor of the ABA Section of Litigation Trial Evidence Subcommittee.
