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James Curtis
USC Gould School of Law

James Curtis

Lecturer in Law

Email:
699 Exposition Blvd. Los Angeles, CA 90089-0074 USA

Last Updated: March 8, 2023




James Curtis, formerly senior vice president and senior counsel at Bank of the West, where he served as the bank's primary contracts attorney for 22 years, divides his time teaching at USC Gould School of Law and at the UCLA Extension Paralegal Training Program. He teaches contracts, contract drafting and negotiation, and commercial paper. He has taught at USC Gould School of Law since 1993.

In 2015, Curtis was awarded the California banking attorney of the year award, the Almon McCallum Award, by the California Bankers Association, a division of the Western Bankers Association. In 2012, UCLA presented Curtis with the Distinguished Instructor Award. The award, presented annually to the top 1 percent of UCLA Extension instructors, recognizes "exemplary teaching, professional knowledge and outstanding commitment to students."

Curtis earned his BA degree with high honors from Eastern Illinois University, and his JD degree from USC Gould School of Law, where he served as vice chair of the Hale Moot Court Honors Program. In 2011, he established the James B. Curtis Endowed Scholarship at USC Law. His 2016 gift named the Hale Moot Court Honors Board office at the USC Gould School of Law. His 2022 gift honored his parents, Anne E. and Gerald F. Curtis.

FACULTY IN THE NEWS

Annenberg Media
September 19, 2023
Re: Thomas Lenz

Thomas Lenz was quoted by Annenberg Media about the United Automobile Workers union ready to go on strike. "Strikes affect the livelihoods of those who choose to stop working. To the extent those persons aren’t earning money to spend that means stores, restaurants, and other businesses might not be as busy. If a strike lasts a long time bills might not get paid as easily, if at all," Lenz wrote.

RECENT SCHOLARSHIP

Mugambi Jouet
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“Guns, Mass Incarceration, and Bipartisan Reform: Beyond Vicious Circle and Social Polarization,” 55 Arizona State Law Journal 239 (2023).

Edward McCaffery
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"The Curiouser and Curiouser Case of Carried Interest" (with Darryll K. Jones), Arizona Law Review (Spring 2024).

Scott Altman
August, 2023

"Are Parents Fiduciaries," 42 Law and Philosophy 431 (2023).