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W. John McGuire

Partner

john.mcguire@morganlewis.com

Washington DC Phone +1.202.373.6799 Fax +1.202.373.6001

1111 Pennsylvania Ave. NW//Washington, DC 20004-2541//United States

John McGuire counsels clients on investment company and investment adviser regulatory issues and related issues affecting broker-dealers and transfer agents. He also assists clients with forming and acquiring investment companies and investment advisers. John routinely handles matters involving the establishment, representation, and counseling of exchange traded investment companies (ETFs), their advisers, and listing markets.

Additionally, John advises clients on regulatory and transactional matters, including development of new products and services; federal and state registration and compliance issues; Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), FINRA, and state investigations and enforcement actions; mergers and acquisitions involving investment companies and investment advisers; interpretive and “no-action” letter requests; SEC exemptive orders; and related matters. John previously worked on some of the key ETF legal milestones, including the first fixed-income ETFs, the first 12(d)(1) relief for ETFs, actively managed ETFs, leveraged and inverse ETFs, and the first ETF in a master-feeder structure.

Before entering private practice, John served on the staff of the SEC in its Investment Management Division. He regularly speaks at industry conferences and has authored or co-authored several articles covering a wide variety of securities regulatory issues and the books Mutual Fund Regulation and Compliance Handbook and Regulation of Exchange-Traded Funds.

Ranked a leading US lawyer for investment management by Chambers USA since 2005, John’s clients told Chambers editors that they appreciate “he is able to see things from a business as well as legal perspective.” John was also selected by Ignites as the 2008 “Fund Titan” in the category of “Outside Counsel.”

Awards and Affiliations

Member, ETF Law Firm of the Year, ETF.com (2019)

Member, Best ETF Legal & Compliance Firm, ETFexpress (2019)

Member, Practice Group of the Year, Asset Management, Law360 (2017)

Recognized, Mutual Funds Law, Washington, DC, The Best Lawyers in America (2014–2015, 2017–2020)

Band 1, Investment Funds: Registered Funds, USA, Chambers Global (2021)

Ranked, Investment Funds: Registered Funds, USA, Chambers Global (2020)

Ranked, Investment Funds: Registered Funds, Nationwide, Chambers USA (2005–2020)

Recommended, Investment fund formation and management: Mutual/registered/exchange-traded funds, The Legal 500 US (2009–2012, 2014–2020)

Recognized as the 2008 “Fund Titan” in the Category of Outside Counsel by Ignites

Former Chair, District of Columbia Bar Association, Investment Management Committee

Member and Former Steering Committee Member, District of Columbia Bar Association, Corporation Finance and Securities Law Section

Member, American Bar Association, Business Law Section, Federal Regulation of Securities Committee, Investment Companies and Investment Advisers Subcommittee

Associate Editor, Washburn Law Journal

Admissions

  • District of Columbia

Education

  • Washburn University School of Law, 1986, Juris Doctor
  • Wichita State University, 1980, Bachelor of Arts
  • Wichita State University, 1986, Master of Public Administration

Sectors

  • Investment Funds
  • Banking

Services

  • Investment Management
  • Registered Funds

Events

9/29/2020 - NYSE ETF Industry Summit: The Future of ETFs in a Virtual World

9/24/2020 - Recent Innovations in Registered Fund Products

10/30/2019 - The New ETF Rule

8/1/2019 - New Paths Forward: Precidian’s Activeshares® and The Conversion Of Mutual Funds To ETFs

6/26/2019 - Current Legal and Compliance Issues Affecting ETF APs and Market Markers

6/19/2018 - The Changing Landscape of Exchange-Traded Products

6/2/2018 - US Bancorp Fund Services Client Conference

5/1/2018 - 2018 NYSE ETF Regulatory Summit

3/19/2018 - The Changing Landscape of Exchange-Traded Products

12/4/2017 - Independent Directors Council Webinar: Board Oversight of ETFs

10/24/2017 - Independent Directors Council (IDC) 2017 Fund Directors Conference

9/28/2017 - Independent Directors Council (IDC) Mid-Atlantic Chapter Meeting

4/6/2017 - 2017 NYSE ETF Regulatory Summit

12/6/2016 - Asset and Wealth Management Conference

9/29/2016 - 2016 ETF Bootcamp

7/7/2015 - ETF 2.0: Shaped and Fueled by Six Key trends

3/15/2015 - ICI Mutual Funds and Investment Management Conference

12/4/2014 - Are Non-Transparent ETFs and ETMFs the “Next Big Thing”?

2/17/2012 - 2012 Derivatives Roundtable: Exploring the Use of Derivatives by Mutual Funds, Closed-End Funds, and ETFs

7/21/2011 - ALI-ABAE Mutual Funds Conference: Investment Company Regulation and Compliance

News

11/18/2020 - DFA to Convert $20B in Mutual Funds to ETFs, Ignites

9/21/2020 - NYSE Plans Would Speed Launch of Portfolio-Shielding ETFs, Ignites

4/16/2020 - SEC Breaks Down Listing Barriers for Most ETFs, Ignites

12/5/2019 - If You Allow It, Will They Come? For Inverse, Leverage ETFs, Maybe Not, Ignites

9/26/2019 - Washington Gives Exchange-Traded Funds Fast Lane to Market, The Wall Street Journal

8/3/2018 - As SEC Aims to Nix Exemptive Relief, ETFs Still Knocking on Agency’s Door, Ignites

8/22/2016 - Five Questions on US ETF Regulation, On the Regs

2/2/2016 - Morgan Lewis Partner Co-Writes New Book on the Regulation of Exchange-Traded Funds

1/11/2016 - ETF Exams May Pave Way For SEC Enforcement Actions, Law360

9/24/2015 - SEC May Take Longer to Approve New ETFs - attorneys, Reuters

7/13/2015 - SPDR Trusts Gain ’40 Act Relief for Indexes Including Long, Short Positions, BNA's Securities Regulation & Law Report

Publications

12/14/2020 - SEC Modernizes Framework for Fund Valuation Practices

11/4/2020 - New SEC Rule Will Regulate Registered Fund Investments in Derivatives

10/15/2020 - SEC Adopts Comprehensive Framework for Fund of Funds Arrangements

2016–2020 - ETF Roundup

May 2020 - ETF Roundup – Issue 6

4/24/2020 - SEC Proposes New Regulation of Fund Valuation

4/9/2020 - COVID-19: US Regulatory Relief and Related Effects on Markets and Participants

3/30/2020 - COVID-19: SEC Staff Permits Affiliates to Purchase Debt Securities from a Mutual Fund

3/25/2020 - COVID-19 Market Impact: SEC Provides Short-Term Funding, Affiliated Purchase Flexibility to Funds

12/4/2019 - SEC Proposes Requirements for Funds’ Use of Derivatives and Other Transactions

9/27/2019 - The New ETF Rule: Initial Impressions

June 2019 - ETF Roundup – Issue 5

1/3/2019 - SEC Proposes New Comprehensive Registered Fund of Funds Rule

10/15/2018 - SEC Staff Relieves Fund Boards of Certain Compliance Determinations

August 2018 - ETF Roundup – Issue 4

6/29/2018 - SEC Proposes New ETF Rule

November 2017 - ETF Roundup – Issue 3

April 2017 - ETF Roundup – Issue 2

1/19/2017 - The SEC’s Liquidity Rule: What ETF Sponsors Need to Know, Ignites

December 2016 - ETF Roundup – Issue 1

8/5/2016 - SEC Approves Generic Listing Standards for Active ETFs

4/1/2016 - SEC Staff Issues No-Action Letter on Index Fund Investments in Insurance Companies and Securities Related Businesses

12/14/2015 - SEC Proposes Requirements for Funds’ Use of Derivatives and Other Financial Transactions

11/19/2015 - SEC Exam Staff Shares Observations on Outsourced Chief Compliance Officers

10/29/2015 - SEC Proposes Liquidity Risk Management Rules for Open-End Funds, Westlaw Journal

10/27/2015 - NYSE Arca Withdraws Active ETF Generic Listing Standards Proposal as SEC Focus on ETFs Continues

9/28/2015 - SEC Proposes Liquidity Risk Management Rules for Open-End Funds

9/10/2015 - Update on Proposed Listing Standards for Active ETFs

7/2/2015 - SEC Seeks Public Input on Exchange-Traded Product Trading Issues

6/15/2015 - Update on Proposed Listing Standards for Active ETFs

4/21/2015 - Eighth Annual Advanced Topics in Hedge Fund Practices, Part 11: Nontransparent Actively Managed ETFs and Smart BETA

April 2015 - Mutual Funds Today: Exchange-Traded Funds, The Practical Lawyer

12/4/2014 - Are Non-Transparent ETFs and ETMFs the “Next Big Things”?

10/23/2014 - SEC Announces Intention to Deny Proposals for Non-Transparent ETFs

8/8/2014 - Anti-Money Laundering Customer Due Diligence

June 3–June 4, 2010 - Investment Company Regulation and Compliance, presented at an ALI-ABA Conference, Washington, D.C.