A former partner in Solicitors’ firm Slaughter and May, James was recognised as a leading City tax adviser. His wide experience in a range of commercial transactions, added to his work in coaching and professional development, enables him to bring to his mediation practice exceptional skills in understanding people’s commercial and personal needs. In addition to any dispute with a tax or accounting aspect, including professional negligence, James makes an exceptional mediator in business transactions of all kinds.

PROFESSIONAL EXPERIENCE

Commercial mediator

James has considerable experience in mediation, which embraces a number of significant disputes, including:

• between major Insurers on a claim under a Global Excess Errors and Omissions Policy
• claim under a GAFTA contract over quality of product and ancillary and procedural issues, including effect of Scott v. Avery clause
• breach of confidentiality admitted by bank - dispute as to extent of damages - causation, forseeability, remoteness etc.
• claim and counterclaim between cargo interests and shipowner over General Average contributions following engine explosion
• concerning valuation under share transfer provisions in articles of stockbroking company
• between customer and bank over lending policy and Data Protection Act breaches
• between builders and clients over valuation of works done.

He is on the panels of Wandsworth, Merton and Sutton, and Lambeth Mediation Services and works on National Mediation Helpline cases referred to LawWorks.

Centre for Change

James is co-founder of Centre for Change. This partnership specialises in the personal, business and career development of professionals. In this work James and his colleagues coach individuals, run development courses and assist teams in their strategic thinking.

Freelance Tax Practitioner (1996 – 2000)

After leaving Slaughter and May (see below) James continued his career as a tax practitioner for a time. This included being a special tax adviser in the structured finance department of Deutsche Morgan Grenfell and Head of Practice Development in the London tax department at Allen & Overy. He also acted for a number of UK and international clients through his own practice.

Partner of Slaughter and May (1976 - 1996).

James’s career as a full time lawyer spanned 20 years at Slaughter and May, from articled clerk to partner. After training he specialised in tax and became recognised, including in Legal 500 and Chambers, as one of the City’s leading tax practitioners. Experience in tax exercised his analytical skills and required him to become adept at understanding his clients’ commercial objectives and motives. These skills strongly support his work as a mediator.

His work at Slaughter and May extended over a wide range of commercial transactions. These included complex and often cross-border tax based financings, corporate finance, mergers and acquisitions, property developments, joint ventures and private and public investment vehicles.

T: 01263 768607

M: 07768 827410

E: james@jsmediator.co.uk