James is a Public Law Litigation Lawyer at Simpson Grierson in Wellington, assisting clients to navigate government and regulatory processes.

Originally from Timaru, James is an alumni of Timaru Boys High School and the University of Otago, and is a former Press Secretary to the Deputy Prime Minister of New Zealand and former advisor to the Leader of the Opposition.

James has a breadth of political campaigning experience at both national and local body levels and is the co-founder of NZ Election Ads along with Dr Ashley Murchison.

With a background in law and politics, James spent several years working in Māori health in Dunedin before moving to Wellington to work for the John Key and then Bill English-led Governments.