Born in Buffalo, New York, James began his career in private practice in Los Angeles, California.

[1] On March 2, 1923, James was nominated by President Warren G. Harding to a new seat on the United States District Court for the Southern District of California created by 42 Stat.

He was confirmed by the United States Senate on March 3, 1923, and received his commission the same day.

James served in that capacity until his death on July 28, 1940,[1] at Santa Monica Hospital from injuries he suffered in an auto accident.

[2] In 1932 when Oliver Wendell Holmes Jr. retired from the Supreme Court, James was on President Herbert Hoover’s list of possible replacements,[3] although the seat ultimately went to Benjamin N. Cardozo.