James is a commercial property lawyer. He qualified at a leading international City of London firm before joining one of the top law firms in Bristol. In 2009, he became a partner in a commercial law firm in the North West. In 2012 James moved inhouse at CPI Europe, one of the biggest commercial property investors in Europe. At CPI Europe, James was responsible for office portfolios as well as M&A and special projects across the CEE and the U.S. James has supported all kinds of clients – from small businesses and entrepreneurs to multinationals, banks and state entities.
EM Law Client Quotes from Chambers and Partners 2025/2026
“James consistently delivers an outstanding service.”
“What stands out most is his attention to detail and commitment to understanding exactly what I need as a business.”
“He is highly efficient in the delivery of his services and is always responsive and helpful. He is an absolute delight to work with.”
“He has flagged issues I wouldn’t have even thought to look for.”
“James is brilliant at managing risk and skilfully managing difficult parties for the most successful outcomes.”
As well as being technically strong and commercially astute, James gives clients clear and pragmatic advice. His work often requires him to meet demanding deadlines.
James has in-depth experience of handling the international elements of large commercial property transactions having helped clients operate in over 22 jurisdictions.
James speaks fluent German.
James’ experience includes:
- Advising some of the largest landlords in the UK, including The Crown Estate, National Trust, National Grid Property Holdings and various investment funds.
- Advising small companies and entrepreneurs on their commercial property needs in London and across the UK, which has included:
- advising a new restaurant chain on the acquisition of a number of leasehold retail premises across London and the new lease of a warehouse distribution centre.
- advising a national retailer on the acquisition of new retail premises nationwide structured as new leases, assignments of leases and purchases of freeholds (including both asset sales and corporate acquisitions).
- advising a national Care Home Group on the acquisition of both office and care home premises across the UK.
- advising on the acquisition and disposal of various property-based companies including hotels, petrol stations and retail companies.
- Advising banks on lending to property developers, property investors, landed estates and small businesses.
- Leading property-based M&A deals worth over EUR 1.4BN, including two of the largest deals of the last several years in Central Europe:
- sale of the Trigranit international property portfoilio (EUR 550M).
- sale of the Silesia Center, Poland (EUR 412M).
- acquisition of Empark Business Park, Poland (EUR 140M).
- sale of a property portfolio in Texas and Arizona, USA (US $250M).
