James graduated from Worcester College, Oxford with a BA in history and subsequently attained both the Graduate Diploma in Law and Legal Practice Course at BPP Law School. He qualified as a solicitor at Freshfields Bruckhaus Deringer in 2014 before moving to Charles Russell Speechlys in 2017. James entered the London W&I market in March 2020 before joining Ryan Transactional Risk in September 2024. James underwrites W&I policies across a broad spectrum of transactions both in the UK and internationally.