John Jarvey has been in the practice of law since 1981.  After graduating from Drake University School of Law, he began his career as a law clerk for the Honorable Donald E. O’Brien in Sioux City, Iowa.  From there, he served the United States Department of Justice in Washington, D.C. as a trial attorney.  While at the Department of Justice, Jarvey traveled the country and tried cases in numerous states to include Iowa, Florida, Arizona, Indiana, Washington D.C., and Pennsylvania.  Jarvey specialized in the prosecution of doctors and pharmacists engaged in massive pharmaceutical drug diversion.  He argued many appeals in five of the United States courts of appeals.

Jarvey became a United States Magistrate Judge in 1987.  He held that position until his appointment as United States District Court Judge in 2007.  As a magistrate judge, Jarvey presided over hundreds of civil trials.  He also devoted enormous energy to mediation.  He conducted over 400 mediations and quickly developed a reputation for his ability to get the job done.

As a United States District Court Judge, Jarvey presided over a large number of civil and criminal trials each year.  These included complex matters such as class actions, patents, and other commercial litigation.  He became Chief Judge on March 1, 2015.  He worked in other districts across the nation to include federal courts in Connecticut, Alabama, New Mexico, Florida, and Arizona.  He sat by designation on several occasions with the Eighth and Ninth Circuit Courts of Appeals.

From his extensive trial and mediation experience, Jarvey has become adept at analyzing and valuing litigation.  For decades, he has debriefed every jury that he has worked with and, from this, he developed a keen sense of what is important to jurors.  He now brings that experience to GOODMAN/KELLER.