Hon. Joseph M. James

Joseph M. James is a retired judge of the Allegheny County Court of Common Pleas in Pennsylvania. He was appointed to the bench in April 1987, elected later that year, and retained in 1997 and 2007. James served on the Criminal Division before being reassigned to the Civil Division in 1992. From 2000 to 2003 he was the administrative judge of the Civil Division, and from 2003 to 2008 he served as president judge. He retired in June 2013. James earned a Bachelor of Arts from the University of Pittsburgh in 1970 and a Juris Doctor from the University of Pittsburgh School of Law in 1973. He has also served as an adjunct professor at Duquesne University School of Law and has held memberships in several judicial and legal organizations, including the Judicial Inquiry and Review Board, the Judicial Council of Pennsylvania, and the Pennsylvania Conference of State Trial Judges.