Jon D Van Gorp

Jon Van Gorp is chair of Mayer Brown. He has served on the firm’s Management Committee since 2017 and previously served as a co-leader of the Banking & Finance, Capital Markets and Structured Finance practices. He has practiced continuously at Mayer Brown for more than 25 years.

Called by a client “the godfather in mortgage-backed securities” and “the most creative problem solver I ever found,” Jon helps clients analyze their current situations and propose unique yet practical solutions. His reputation for innovation, recognized by the Financial Times, is demonstrated by his integral role in many first-of-their-kind transactions, including:

- The first Non-Performing Loan re-REMIC securitization

- The first offshore public company established to own mortgage-servicing rights

- The first publicly offered CDO of mezzanine MBS debt

- The first issuance of bank debt guaranteed by Farmer Mac

- The first securitization of Mexican mortgage loans funded in the US capital markets

- The first auto receivables shelf registration statement to go effective under Regulation AB

- The first synthetic transfer of risk related to a portfolio of consumer auto leases

- The first synthetic captive auto finance company funded and administered by an independent commercial bank

- The first auto-leveraged lease transaction funded with asset-backed debt

Jon’s experience highlights his versatility and flexibility. The broad range of his work includes public and private securities offerings, private investment funds, mergers and acquisitions, assets sales, structured finance transactions, leveraged leases, derivatives, synthetic risk-transfer programs, litigation/workouts/restructurings, government relations/lobbying and financial guaranty insurance. He develops novel approaches to funding difficult-to-finance assets, such as mortgage servicing-rights and nonperforming mortgage loans, distressed ABS and MBS, residential homes and single-family rental properties, and mortgage servicing advances.

Jon’s clients have included Assured Guaranty, The Blackstone Group, The Carrington Companies, Canada Pension Plan, HSBC, Opendoor and Redwood Trust, among many others.

Because of his innovative management philosophy as chair of Mayer Brown, Jon garners headlines and generates media interest across the legal industry. His leadership philosophy, profiled in Reuters’ "Beyond Cold Hard Cash, Warm Fuzzies Are the Way to a Lawyer's Heart, Firm Chair Says" and Law360’s "Mayer Brown Chair On Why Law Leaders Need to Listen More," centers on fostering a collaborative work culture. The two podcasts he hosts for firm lawyers and staff, Tools of the Trade and The Monthly Check-in, have helped instill a sense of belonging and purpose among colleagues across the organization.

Drawing inspiration and lessons from his lifelong love of reading, Jon frequently publishes book reviews in the American Lawyer and was showcased in the celebratory 200th episode of the American Lawyer’s “Legal Speak” podcast, where he was touted as a fellow podcaster. Because of his broad base of experience and reputation, Jon frequently provides insight and analysis on issues related to the finance and banking industries in top-tier media, including the Associated Press, Bloomberg News, Dow Jones Newswires, the Financial Times, the New York Times and the Wall Street Journal.