James Senior

I am a Senior Legal Project Manager and Europe, Middle East and Africa (EMEA) lead for our Legal Project Delivery Team, providing global project management support to clients.

I joined Bird & Bird in 2022 after a career in policing. I am an accredited project manager, with qualifications in both Prince2 and the Association of Project Management, having undergone assessments to demonstrate competence. I am also able to apply a process improvement mindset and have achieved Lean 6 Sigma Yellow and Green Belt qualifications. I currently provide leadership, direction and management to our EMEA based legal project managers, with a focus on effective delivery to clients, growth and continuous development.

As a former Hostage and Crisis Negotiator, I am able to support clients with the most complex of matters, with an ability to manage risk. In 2023, I became a Chartered and Certified International Business Negotiator and I also attended Harvard University to successfully complete an Advanced Negotiation Skills intensive in-person certification. I am able to support clients with negotiations and have provided training and consultancy on a one-to-one basis, and as a group Continual Professional Development session.

I have supported clients across a range of practice areas, including Employment, Dispute Resolution, Data Privacy, Telecommunications Regulation, Corporate and Commercial in jurisdictions including the UK, Europe and APAC, both on-the-ground and remotely. These include large multi-jurisdictional projects and complex legal matters. I am able to lead matters simultaneously as well as lead other project managers, to ensure that clients receive value for money and an effective service.

In 2018, I completed a Master's degree in Leadership and Management and in 2023 completed my Doctorate in Criminology.

• Leadership of serious crime investigations, including serious injury and high risk cases involving vulnerable people.
• Hostage and Crisis negotiation in high risk situations.
• Management of project managers, ensuring high standards and effective delivery.
• Global on-the-ground business development to support new clients.
• Supporting clients with multi-jurisdictional projects, with effective coordination.
• Managing large budgets with tight deadlines, with experience of working with large corporations.