Jim is an international aviation disaster litigation expert with our International Travel Litigation Group, and also a qualified pilot, which means his practice at Irwin Mitchell Aviation Law benefits.  These two roles means that he brings over 20 years of experience in aviation and litigation, which gives his clients a distinct advantage in this very complicated area of technology and law.

Jim joined the Royal Air Force in 1990 and qualified on a number of military aircraft. As well as this, Jim also received specialist training in aviation accident analysis and crew resource management, to become a Squadron Flight Safety Officer.

In 2002 Jim transferred to the RAF Legal Branch and qualified as a barrister. In 2008 Jim retired from the RAF in order to specialise in representing the victims of aviation disasters.  He has represented hundreds of passengers/ families in many aviation disasters worldwide, involving light aircraft, business jets, helicopters and airliners.  In many cases Jim was able to identify a product defect as one of the causes, which resulted in US product liability litigation.

As a barrister, Jim also represents the families of aviation disasters at inquests.