John W. Bissell

Judge John Winslow Bissell (ret.) was appointed by President Reagan in 1982 to the United States District Court for the District of New Jersey, where he served through 2005. From 2001 to 2005, he was Chief Judge of that Court.

Born in Exeter, New Hampshire, Judge Bissell earned his B.A. from Princeton in 1962, followed by an L.L.B. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1965. After clerking with New Jersey U.S. District Court Judge Arthur S. Lane, he joined Pitney, Hardin and Kipp in Newark (1966 to 1969) before becoming an Assistant United States Attorney for the District of New Jersey (1969 to 1971). Thereafter, he returned to private practice until he was appointed in 1978 by Governor Brendan Byrne to the Essex County District Court, beginning his twenty-seven year jurist career.

Subsequent to his retirement from the U.S. District Court, he joined Connell Foley LLP in Roseland, New Jersey as Counsel, where he served both as Chair of the firm’s Alternative Dispute Resolution Department and as a member of the Business Litigation practice groups until his retirement in 2014. Judge Bissell served as Chair of the Board of Directors of the National Association of Sports Officials and is the recipient of numerous awards including the 2005 John F. Gerry Memorial Award from the Camden County Bar Association, the 2005 Association of the Federal Bar of the District of New Jersey William J. Brennan, Jr. Award, and a Lifetime Achievement Award from the Seton Hall University School of Law Public Interest Network.