James E. Wager-Smith is an experienced civil litigator who focuses his practice on the defense of health care and business professionals. For more than two decades, Mr. Wager-Smith has successfully defended dentists, emergency room physicians, anesthesiologists, primary care physicians, ophthalmologists, nurses, and other health care providers in complex medical and dental malpractice litigation. In addition, Mr. Wager-Smith has represented both buyers and sellers in business disputes and has defended employers in wage and hour, wrongful termination, discrimination, and other employment litigation. Mr. Wager-Smith has successfully tried cases before juries and arbitrators throughout Northern California and has defended health care providers before State Licensing Boards. In addition, Mr. Wager-Smith writes and lectures on risk management and employment law issues.

Respected as an aggressive advocate, Mr. Wager-Smith is also a skilled negotiator who utilizes innovative problem solving to achieve his clients’ litigation goals.

A native of the East Bay Area, Mr. Wager-Smith graduated from California State University, Sacramento with a Bachelor of Science in Government and a minor in Journalism. He received his Juris Doctorate from Regent University in Virginia Beach, Virginia in 1997. At Regent, Mr. Wager-Smith was a member of the nationally recognized Client Counseling and Dispute Resolution Board and a Graduate Assistant to Constitutional Law Professor Tarver Roundtree. Upon graduation from law school, Mr. Wager-Smith joined the law firm of McNamara, Houston, Dodge, McClure and Ney as an associate and practiced general insurance defense litigation. He joined The Goldman Law Firm in 1999 as an associate and was elevated to Partner in 2005. In March of 2009, Mr. Wager-Smith established The Wager-Smith Law Firm with the goal of providing aggressive, cost-efficient, and results oriented representation to health care and business professionals.

Mr. Wager-Smith is licensed to practice law in both California and Hawaii.