James has more than 40 years of experience in the area of estate planning and administration, estate disputes, and real estate. He has been with the firm since he began practicing law in 1983. Mr. Cox received a B.A. summa cum laude from Duke University in 1980 and a J.D. from the University of Virginia School of Law in 1983. He is a Virginia Law Foundation Fellow and a committee member of Virginia CLE and the Virginia Law Foundation. He is a past Chairman and member of the Council and Legislative Committee of the Wills, Trusts, and Estates Section of the Virginia Bar Association. He was the President of the Charlottesville Albemarle Bar Association for 2009-2010 and is the current Chairman of the Real Estate Committee of the Charlottesville Albemarle Bar Association. He is a frequent lecturer in continuing legal education programs and since 1993 has been the author of the annual supplements to the four-volume treatise, Harrison on Wills and Administration in Virginia and West Virginia, published by the Michie Company, now Lexis Nexis. He is also the editor and contributing author to the Virginia CLE publication, Estate and Trust Administration in Virginia, first published in 1997. He is named in the current edition of the Best Lawyers in America, in both Trusts and Estates and Real Estate Law, and as Lawyer of the Year in Trusts and Estates for 2020.

I've been practicing law since 1995. I'm licensed to practice law in the Commonwealth of Virginia, the District of Columbia, the State of Georgia, the Military Courts of the United States, the United States Court of Appeals for the Armed Forces, the United States Court of Federal Claims, and the Supreme Court of the United States. I served over 20 Years as a United States Marine both as an enlisted member (Amphibious Assault Crewman) and officer (Military Attorney and Judge Advocate). As a Military Attorney I provided legal assistance to members of the military and their families in areas of Family Law, Estate Planning, and Consumer Protection. As a Military Criminal Defense Attorney I represented members of the military at Court Martial and Administrative Discharge Board proceedings facing charges ranging from Capital Murder and Rape to simple Unauthorized Absence.