James Cox

James accepts instructions across the full range of Chambers’ practice areas, with an emphasis on criminal, public, extradition, and international law. He has a particular interest in matters with a human rights dimension.

A core part of James’s practice is criminal defence. He regularly appears in the Crown Court, and he has been praised for his ‘considerable court presence’, ‘admirable’ cross-examination, and ‘understated and gently persuasive’ manner. Recent and present instructions include acting as sole counsel for a defendant facing multiple counts of arson with intent to endanger life, advancing a modern slavery defence to a defendant charged with industrial-scale cannabis farming, and acting as junior counsel to a silk in a high-profile bribery trial.

James has a particular interest in criminal cases involving a human rights element, and he has worked on several cases involving ECHR arguments, including protest cases.

Alongside his domestic criminal practice, James has a growing practice in extradition and related international law. He has experience representing requested persons in extradition proceedings, and he will be seconded to the CPS Extradition Unit from March 2026. He has written widely on extradition and international law, and he has particular expertise in proceedings engaging ECHR rights.

James is appointed to the Attorney General’s Civil ‘Junior Junior’ Scheme, and is elected to the Executive Committee of the Human Rights Lawyers Association. He has written articles on legal and human rights topics for a variety of publications, for which he has won awards.