As shareholder and former managing partner of the firm (1999-2005; 2006-2015), John advises businesses on a range of topics, including the planning, structuring, and negotiating of mergers and acquisitions, corporate reorganizations, purchases and sales of businesses, and raising capital through issuance of debt and equity securities. John has been recognized by numerous professional organizations, including Chambers USA every year since 2003. He has also been recognized by The Best Lawyers in America in Tax Law every year since 1991 and in Corporate Law, Mergers and Acquisitions, and Securities Regulation every year since 2011, in addition to Best Lawyers naming him “Lawyer of the Year” in Birmingham four times. He has served as an adjunct professor of Advanced Corporate Tax at the University of Alabama School of Law and of Partnership Taxation at Samford's Cumberland School of Law.
Why did you become an attorney?
I became an attorney primarily because universities were not hiring PhD’s in history or political science in 1974. I chose to attend law school with the intent of being a trial lawyer and discovered that I had an aptitude for tax and business law, so I went to NYU after law school to obtain an LLM in taxation.
What is the best part of your job?
I enjoy working on complex matters to solve a client's problem and assist them in achieving their goals. I also enjoy working with a team of outstanding lawyers and other professionals.
Who has inspired you in your career?
The three persons who most inspired me in my career are Hank Lischer, my tax professor at the University of Alabama; Karl Friedman, the managing partner of Sirote when I joined the firm and a father figure to me; and Richard Cohn, with whom I worked daily for the first ten years at Sirote and who was my mentor.
What are you most proud of in your practice?
That I have been able to handle a variety of complex tax, corporate, and securities matters for many clients of various sizes in numerous industries.
What do you think are the three most important things you do to serve your clients?
My responsiveness, honesty, and sound, practical advice are the three most important things I offer clients.
What do you like to do in your spare time?
I love to spend time with my family, especially my grandchildren, read, exercise, and serve my church and my community in my spare time. I also enjoy woodworking when I have the time.
Awards and Accreditations
•The Best Lawyers in America
•Chambers USA
•AV-Preeminent Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating
•Mid-South Super Lawyers
Outside the Office
•Greater Birmingham Habitat for Humanity
•Board of Directors (2000-2012)
•Holy Family Cristo Rey High School
•Board of Trustees (2009-2014)
•John Carroll Catholic High School
•Board of Directors (2009-2014)
•Samford University's Cumberland School of Law
•Adjunct Professor, Partnership Taxation
•State of Alabama Ethics Commission
•Chair (2004-2009)
•University of Alabama School of Law
•Adjunct Professor, Advanced Corporate Tax (1982-2008)
•Vestavia Hills Board of Education
•Member (2004-2007)
•Chair (2008-2009)
•Vice Chair (2007-2008)
Recognition
•The Best Lawyers in America
•Corporate Law (2011-2020)
•Mergers and Acquisitions Law (2011-2020)
•Securities Regulation (2011-2020)
•Tax Law (1991-2020)
•Best Lawyers
•Corporate Law Lawyer of the Year in Birmingham (2012)
•Corporate Law Lawyer of the Year in Birmingham (2015)
•Mergers and Acquisitions Law Lawyer of the Year in Birmingham (2013)
•Securities Regulation Lawyer of the Year in Birmingham (2013)
•Chambers USA, Corporate/Commercial (2003-2020)
•AV Preeminent Martindale-Hubbell Peer Review Rating
•Mid-South Super Lawyers
(2008-2015)
•Best of US Inc., Best of Class for Tax (2006)
•Birmingham Business Journal, Best of the Bar
(2006)
•Birmingham Magazine, Top Attorney in Tax Law
(2009)
Thought Leadership
•Advises businesses on a wide variety of topics, including the planning, structuring, and negotiating of mergers and acquisitions, corporate reorganizations, and purchases and sales of businesses, as well as the structuring of business organizations with respect to ownership, financial, and tax planning issues, venture capital transactions, and public and private securities transactions in diverse industries, such as technology, health care, pharmaceutical, real estate, and retail
News
•Sirote Shareholders Author Chapter for Chambers Corporate M&A 2020 Guide
•Chambers USA 2020 Recognizes Nine Sirote Attorneys and Four Practice Groups
•Ten Sirote Attorneys Recognized by Chambers USA 2018
•Sirote & Permutt Announces 47 Attorneys Selected as The Best Lawyers in America for 2016
•Sirote & Permutt Announces 28 Attorneys Selected As Alabama Super Lawyers 2015
•Sirote Attorneys Selected for 2015 Chambers USA
•Sirote's Cooper, Hutchins, and Ragsdale Designated Lawyers of the Year for 2015
•Sirote & Permutt Welcomes New Attorney John C.S. Pierce
•Sirote & Permutt Attorneys Included in The Best Lawyers in America for 2015
•Sirote & Permutt Presents ASCPA Webinar Series
•Sirote Attorneys Make 2014 Chambers USA Leading Lawyer List
•Sirote & Permutt Announces 28 Attorneys Selected As Alabama Super Lawyers 2014
•Sirote CEO John Cooper is Upcoming Speaker for ASCPA Webinar
•Best Lawyers Recognizes 46 Sirote Attorneys as the Best Lawyers in America for 2014
•Sirote CEO John Cooper to Speak at ASCPA Webinar
•Sirote & Permutt Present ASCPA Hot Topics in Tax Webinar Series
•Sirote & Permutt Announces 30 Attorneys Selected as Alabama Super Lawyers 2013
•Seven Sirote Attorneys Selected for 2013 Chambers USA List of the Best
•Sirote Opens Office in Fort Lauderdale
•Sirote & Permutt Wins 2013 Communitas Award for Community Partnership Initiative
• Birmingham Business Journal Names Sirote & Permutt as Nonprofit Awards Finalist
•Sirote Welcomes Three New Attorneys to the Birmingham Office
•Supreme Court Justice Tom Woodall Joins Sirote & Permutt's Appellate Practice Group
•Sirote CEO John Cooper featured in Business Journal's “Six Tips for Building Office Morale”
•Sirote Supports Initiative Breaks New Ground as Finalist in Birmingham Magazine’s Inaugural “Groundbreaker” Awards
•Sirote's John Cooper & Jim Sturdivant Designated Lawyers of the Year for 2013
•Sirote Legal Alert: The Changing Tax Climate
•Best Lawyers Recognizes 43 Attorneys from Sirote & Permutt as the Best Lawyers in America for 2013
•Sirote's CEO John Cooper will Present ASCPA Tax Webinar
•Chambers USA Selects Five Sirote Attorneys for its 2012 List
•CEO John Cooper to Speak at ASCPA-Sirote Webinar
•Julian Butler Retires as Madison County Attorney
•Six Sirote Attorneys Designated Best Lawyers of the Year for 2012
•Best Lawyers has selected 32 attorneys from Sirote & Permutt for recognition in The Best Lawyers in America for 2011
•Three Sirote Attorneys Selected for 2010 Chambers USA List of the Best
•John Cooper Makes Birmingham's Most Influential List
•31 Sirote Attorneys Listed In Best Lawyers
•Publication Recognizes 20 From Sirote As Super Lawyers
•Sirote Attorneys Named to Best Lawyers 2009
•Sirote & Permutt And Attorneys Selected For 2008 Chambers USA's List Of The Best
•Fourteen Sirote Lawyers Named to Super Lawyers
Speeches and Publications
•Co-author, Corporate M&A Trends and Developments, Chambers and Partners USA South East Guide (2018 - present)
•Co-Author, Avoiding The Securities Minefield, Sirote Corporate & Tax Planning Blog, February 5, 2017
•Editor, Advantage, Sirote's Private Clients, Trusts and Estates Blog
•Editor, Appellate Practice Today, Sirote's Appellate Practice Blog
•Editor, Commercial Real Estate Today, Sirote's Commerical Real Estate Blog
•Editor, Consumer Finance Report, Sirote's Consumer Finance Blog
•Editor, Corporate & Tax Planning Today, Sirote's Corporate & Tax Planning Blog
•Editor, Sirote Supports, Sirote's Community Blog
•Editor, The Defender, Sirote's Tax Controversy Blog
•Editor, The Entrepreneur's Journey, Sirote's Microsite for Entrepreneurs
•Editor, The Preserver, Sirote's Conservation Easement Blog
•Editor, White Collar and Government Investigations, Sirote's White Collar and Government Investigations Blog
•Author, Sirote Supports: Dedication to Education, The Counselor, July 2014
•Author, Sirote Supports Kicks Off New Year with a Bang, Sirote Supports, January 2013
•Author, Jingle All the Way to Help Arthritis Sufferers, Sirote Supports, December 2012
•Author, Holy Family Cristo Rey Catholic High School: An Urban Education Model That Works, Sirote Supports, November 2012
•Author, Sirote's Commitment to Our Educational System, Sirote Supports, August 2012
•Co-author and Co-editor, Tax Planning for Professionals, published by Warren, Gorham & Lamont, 1986
