James has been with the bank since 2013 and since 2019 has jointly managed a team of approximately 80 lawyers based in ten countries in the region overseeing all legal issues of MUFG Bank and MUFG Securities –including advising the wholesale businesses, managing a substantial portfolio of litigation and regulatory enforcement matters and managing all regional corporate governance. James is an Executive Committee member and a member of the EMEA Management Committee. James is also a trustee of the MUFG Bank pension scheme.

James started his career as a solicitor at the magic circle law firm, Slaughter and May as a banking and finance lawyer, which included significant work advising the UK Government on the nationalization of a number of banks during the 2008 Global Financial Crisis. Following that,

James worked as senior in-house counsel at Citigroup and was the Legal Director at NYSE Euronext from 2012-2013. James holds a Bachelor’s degree in Law from Bristol University, a Post-graduate Diploma in Legal Practice from Oxford University and Oxford Brookes (Joint Honours) and a Post-graduate Certificate in Legal Technology from the University of Law with a specialist knowledge of Artificial Intelligence and Technoethics.

James is a qualified Solicitor-Advocate in England and Wales and is a litigation specialist with rights of audience in the UK higher courts. James is an accredited meditator with qualification from the Centre for Effective Dispute Resolution (CEDR). James is also a qualified Solicitor in the Republic of Ireland. James has been published in various publications, and is a regular speaker at industry conferences.