Laurance briefly served as President pro tempore of the United States Senate in December 1798.

[2] He pursued academic studies,[2] then read law in 1772,[1] with Cadwallader Colden, the Lieutenant Governor of New York.

[3] In 1776, he received a commission as captain and paymaster of the Continental Army's 1st New York Regiment, serving under his father-in-law Alexander McDougall (sometimes spelled MacDougall).

[1] While serving in the State Senate, Laurance was also a member of New York City's Board of Aldermen.

[1] His service terminated on November 8, 1796, due to his resignation,[1] after his election as United States Senator from New York.

[2] Following his departure from Congress, Laurance resumed private practice in New York City from 1800 to 1810,[1] also residing there until his death.

[2] After more than two centuries of neglect by historians, the first book-length study of John Laurance was published by the American Philosophical Society in 2019.