James McManis

A member of the trial bar for over 50 years, James McManis represents companies in Silicon Valley and beyond with commercial, trade secret, and intellectual property issues. He also represents individuals in a wide variety of matters, including civil rights actions, employment disputes, family law, and criminal defense. Mr. McManis has unparalleled experience and skill in preparing and presenting cases for adjudication – whether by jury, judge, arbitrator, mediator, or the parties themselves.

Mr. McManis received his J.D. from Berkeley Law at the University of California (1967) and his BA in history, with Distinction, Phi Beta Kappa, from Stanford University (1964). He originally tried criminal cases as deputy district attorney before founding his own firm in 1971. Throughout his 50+ years as a trial lawyer, Mr. McManis has received many notables wins, including the unanimous California Supreme Court decision in Smith v. City of San Jose, a case that set a statewide precedent for records disclosure for all public entities in California. He and his team also received a historic ruling in Ibrahim v. Department of Homeland Security, which was the first successful challenge to the US Government’s no-fly list."

Mr. McManis is an honorary bencher of the Honorable Society of King’s Inns, the oldest institution of legal education in Ireland. He is also a Fellow of the Academy of Court Appointed Masters, the American College of Trial Lawyers, the Litigation Counsel of America, the American Bar Foundation, and the International Academy of Trial Lawyers (IATL). Mr. McManis previously served as president of the Boalt Hall Alumni Association of University of California, Berkeley School of Law, and he remains an active member of the Berkeley Law alumni community. In addition to publishing articles in the Daily Journal, Mr. McManis is a frequent lecturer and has served on the faculty of the Intensive Advocacy Program of the University of San Francisco Law School; the Advocacy Skills Workshop at Stanford University Law School; and as a lecturer at Boalt Hall.