About Scott
Scott James built his legal career at the crossroads of venture capital and technology. He moves comfortably between boardrooms and classrooms. His work has ranged from startup financings to advising general counsel, and his roles have crossed private practice and in-house positions.
He studied at the University of California, Davis, where he earned a B.S. in 2006. He later returned to the Bay Area for law school and received his J.D. from the University of California College of the Law, San Francisco in 2013.
James began his legal practice as an associate at Gunderson Dettmer in 2013. There he handled corporate and financing matters for emerging companies and investors. In 2016 he moved in-house as Associate General Counsel at Accel Partners, joining a team that managed a broad portfolio of venture investments.
In 2018 he became General Counsel at DCVC, a role that expanded his responsibilities to include compliance, deal negotiations and governance across complex venture transactions. That same year he took on a shorter academic fellowship as an Executive Fellow at the Berkeley Center for Law and Business. He then taught as an adjunct professor at the University of California, Berkeley School of Law in 2019 and at UC Hastings College of the Law in 2020, bringing practical deal experience to law students.
James has been active in industry groups. He served as Advisory Board Co-Chair for the UC Hastings Center for Business Law in 2018. He joined the Steering Committee for TechGC in 2019 and became a member of the General Counsel Advisory Board at the National Venture Capital Association in 2020. Those roles put him in regular conversation with other general counsel and corporate legal leaders.
In 2023 he assumed leadership at Goodwater as Partner and Chief Operating Officer. In that position he oversees firm operations while staying involved in transactional work and portfolio oversight. His background in private practice, venture firms and in-house counsel roles informs how he approaches both strategic and day-to-day legal questions.
He is admitted to practice in California and continues to split his time between transactional matters, corporate governance and advising venture-backed companies. His current practice focuses on venture financings, corporate governance and the legal needs of technology companies.
