James Ames

My strength as an advocate comes from my emphasis on listening to my clients and fighting for the outcome they truly want. You will find many lawyers pay lip service to their promises to communicate with and listen to their clients, but fail to follow through on those promises. This prevents them from ever being effective advocates for their clients. I focus on being easy to contact, keeping my clients apprised of ongoing case matters, and consulting my clients regularly on their goals because goals may change as the case moves along. I don't advertise on TV, and I don't advertise on billboards, I accept fewer cases and tirelessly work them to maximize the outcome for my client. While we might not always have to go to trial, we will always be ready for trial.

Proud to Call Dallas-Fort Worth My Home

I have lived my entire life in the Dallas-Fort Worth area. While attending junior college at night, I worked full-time at a bagel shop where we would start baking at 3:30 in the morning. It is here that I learned that some of your best work can be done early in the morning and that a human being, and a cat, can survive entirely on a diet of bagels. From there I transferred to SMU where I received an undergraduate degree in political science with a minor in psychology. I was one of two seniors to be named an Outstanding Scholar. I had a previous career in banking—concentrating on portfolio management and financial sales—and then went on to the SMU Dedman School of Law and graduated cum laude (which apparently means “with honors,” just harder to say). I was also a member of the Science and Technology Law Review.

Why I Chose Personal Injury Law

I was lucky to find my calling in the first year of law school while working as a law clerk in a large personal injury trial firm—The Noteboom Firm in Hurst, Texas. I would have many internship experiences, including the Tarrant and Rockwall County District Attorneys’ offices, but none compared to the satisfaction gained by tangibly changing people’s lives for the better through trial work. Whether allowing a child burn victim to afford the care he needs to live a comfortable life, obtaining a bicycle wreck recovery that allowed a 27-year-old client to pay all his medical bills and buy his first motor vehicle, or helping a family fight for what they are owed after the tragic and wrongful death of a father, plaintiff-focused trial law has been rewarding and worthwhile.