John Lyon
Senior Staff Attorney
Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Door
Washington, D.C.
Class of 1997
Majors: Political Science and Sociology Minor: Theology
Law School: University of Missouri, Kansas City School of Law (2003)
My favorite aspect of practicing law is the feeling I get when I make a positive difference in the world,” John Lyon commented. Make no mistake – he is making a positive difference in the world.
After graduating from Houghton, Lyon dedicated two years of his life to the Peace Corps where he volunteered in a small village in the western mountains of Jamaica. He built latrines for the people in the community, gathered engineers and designed a water system, raised money from donors to build a new school and then organized the people of the community to build it.
“I first became interested in international development work in a class at Houghton College taught by Dr. Ron Oakerson,” Lyon explained. “The class was called Political Economy of Developing Countries. After this class, I decided to volunteer with Peace Corps. During my time in the Peace Corps, I decided that I needed a professional degree. I felt that law was interesting and provided me an opportunity to get involved in a variety of fields.”
Following his graduation from the University of Missouri, Kansas City School of Law in 2003, Lyon joined Wilmer Cutler Pickering Hale and Dorr, a law firm of 1,000 attorneys with offices in 12 cities in the United States, Europe and Asia. Lyon currently serves as a senior staff attorney in the Securities Department of the Washington D.C. branch where he spends his workday engaged in litigation, securities investigations and international work.
John Lyon uses his law degree in a traditional sense as an attorney by day, but his degree has also allowed him to pursue his life’s work – bettering the lives of others around the world. Since he graduated from Houghton, Lyon has traveled to Honduras to help build hundreds of latrines for the Honduran people suffering after Hurricane Mitch. He worked to build school buildings for the Caribbean Wesleyan College in Savanna-la-Mar, Jamaica. In Guatemala, Lyon again explored methods and means to provide a water sanitation system. In Uganda, he has helped a team of attorneys with an indigenous forest people who were wrongfully removed from their traditional homeland.
Lyon’s most recent project has taken him to Sierra Leone – a small country in West Africa. Lyon, along with other members and volunteers with World Hope International, is in the process of developing a special economic zone under an agreement with the Government of Sierra Leone to attract foreign direct investment to improve the economy and living conditions of the Sierra Leone people – 70% of whom live below the poverty line. This initiative, FIRST STEP, will use 50 acres of donated land by the Government of Sierra Leone to create an eco-friendly, fair trade zone where international organizations can establish production centers without significant up-front costs or risks. This initiative has the potential to create hundreds of jobs for the people in Sierra Leone. Lyon serves as legal counsel to the project.
For John Lyon, his law degree did not just provide him with a job; it has been a means by which he helps better the world. Lyon commented, “I’m glad that I’ve found a way to get involved with international development projects with this profession.”
Advice for individuals interested in law:
“Students should have a good idea of what attorneys do on a day-to-day basis before they choose law as a profession. I recommend that students intern with a law firm or practicing attorney before they choose to apply for law school. ”
