EDUCATION

• J.D., Columbia University, 1988
• B.A., University of Kansas, 1985

BAR ADMISSIONS

• Arizona, 1991
• U.S. District Court, District of Arizona
• U.S. Supreme Court
•United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit
• U.S. Court of Federal Claims

PRACTICE AREAS

• Commercial Litigation
• Construction Law
• Arts & Entertainment
• Appellate Practice

Jim Reed specializes in commercial business litigation, construction law, arts & entertainment and related intellectual property. Jim received his B.A. from the University of Kansas in 1985, where he attended the 1984 College National Debate Tournament and the 1985 U.S.– Canadian Public Debate Series.  He received his J.D. from Columbia Law School in 1988. Jim has represented clients at all state and federal appellate levels, including the U.S. Supreme Court, and has argued before the Nevada Supreme Court, and the Arizona, Pennsylvania and the United States Court of Appeals, Ninth Circuit.  Jim represents contractors and some of the largest materials suppliers in the United States, along with film and music production companies and artists.  He has handled trademark and copyright matters, along with distribution agreements, licenses and other contracts with local and international studios and distributors.  Jim also served on the national staff or as senior policy advisor on four presidential campaigns, along with drafting policy for Morgan Fairchild's 2005 Screen Actors Guild campaign.

Jim Reed was a disability law adviser to the 2006 U.S. Senate campaign and the 2008 presidential campaign of Secretary of State Hillary Clinton.  (discussing disability policy in 2005 at home of Rob Reiner)

In the area of construction law, Jim handles disputes concerning lien rights on private property and payment bond claims on public construction projects, along with contract breaches, construction defects and commercial letters of credit. He argued the first "Joint Check Rule" appeal in the Nevada State Supreme Court, which now affects the way every Nevada general contractor and property owner pays subcontractors. Jim's construction defect experience includes soil preparation, concrete pouring and curing, roofing and truss safety, elevator performance, paint manufacture and application, and electrical system design safety for heat and fire. Jim has also handled litigation and workouts for the sale or rentals of front-end loaders, conveyors, forklifts, paint mixers and spray booths, precision boring equipment and multi-story industrial oven towers. Jim has used expert witnesses at most phases of building design and construction.

Arizona Supreme Court Justice Ruth V. McGregor, Jim Reed and Vice Chief Justice Rebecca White Birch, 2006 Arizona Judicial Conference

In general business litigation, Jim has been lead counsel in lawsuits involving loan recourse agreements, Uniform Commercial Code (UCC) protections, commercial and residential real estate transactions, software "planned obsolescence" mechanisms, the computer digital photography design for a nationally recognized jewelry catalogue, employment agreements, and various commercial contracts. His litigation successes include winning summary judgment against a $26 million fraud and RICO action regarding the Lake Havasu City electrical code, using a federal constitutional immunity defense for witnesses testifying at a legislative proceeding.

For post-judgment proceedings, Jim has tracked and seized assets of judgment debtors who have fled not just Arizona, but the United States as well. He is one of the first Arizona attorneys to successfully garnish a spendthrift trust, the most judicially-protected non-bankruptcy device to avoid creditors. In that matter, pursuant to judgments worth more than two million dollars against a defendant residing in Mexico, Jim garnished over $100,000 from a trust originating with the sinking of the Titanic.

	Jim Reed and Morgan Fairchild confer during her 2005 Screen Actors Guild campaign (Jim drafted the film anti-piracy, Performers with Disabilities, pension and health care platforms)

Jim is a member of the Arizona State Bar Construction Law Section and has served on the Legislative Committee for the Arizona Contractors Association. Jim is also a member of the Arizona Chapter of the National Association of Credit Managers, and was a featured lien and bond lecturer at the 2004 NACM National Congress. Jim co-chairs the Education and Outreach Subcommittee of the Courthouse Access Advisory Committee (CAAC) for the United States Federal Access Board, and chairs the Courthouse Accessibility Subcommittee for the State Bar of Arizona. Jim is a frequent lecturer on lien and bond law and UCC remedies for local contractors and materials suppliers, and has lectured on universal access design of courthouses at the Arizona State Bar Convention and for the U.S. Access Board.

In 2003, BizAZ Magazine recognized Jim as one of 14 "Up and Coming" Arizona Attorneys. In 2004, the Arizona State University Law School presented Jim with a Distinguished Achievement Award for his work on accessible courthouses and election polling places in Arizona. In his spare time, Jim serves as an election law

attorney and disability and health policy advisor for state and federal candidates for public office, including three presidential candidates. He is currently a member of the Health Policy Roundtable for the Aspen Institute. Jim is the only attorney to have served as an observation team leader for both the Florida 2000 Presidential Election recount and the Arizona 2002 Governor's Election provisional ballot count. Jim's written testimony on polling place accessibility was solicited and accepted into the record by the U.S. Commission on Civil Rights for public hearings on the Florida 2000 Presidential Election.

Jim 's established litigation practice includes media advocacy experience. He has appeared several times on CSPAN TV and Radio, and at the National Press Club, on behalf of former Vice-President Al Gore. Jim's policy advice in 2005 extended to the Screen Actor's Guild election, where he drafted the anti-piracy, health, pension and disability platforms for SAG presidential candidate Morgan Fairchild. Jim's clients include fine artists and established media consultants.

	Craig LaChance and Jim Reed at the 2013 disability presidential inaugural ball.