NVTC TechPAC Board of Trustees
General CounselJim Lewis
Partner
Holland & Knight, LLP
James M. Lewis practices primarily in the area of corporate and business law.
Mr. Lewis serves as counsel to a diverse group of enterprises, including an international management company specializing in the development and commercialization of technology, a software engineering webcasting company focusing on medical communications, an 8(A) IT government contractor, an economic development authority building a "high tech city" on a privatized Army base, a bank holding company, and a closely held quarry business with a substantial real estate portfolio.
Mr. Lewis' business practice focuses on mergers and acquisitions, as well as representation of early stage and mature technology companies and closely held corporations regarding business organizations, finance, employment matters, executive compensation, and intellectual property agreements.
Mr. Lewis often assists in the formation of U.S. subsidiaries of foreign businesses seeking to enter the U.S. market and in addressing their tax, immigration, employment practices, IP protection, and general business needs.
Mr. Lewis served as General Counsel to the 1998 World Congress on Information Technology, which brought 1500 senior IT executives to Fairfax, Virginia in June 1998; served on the International Advisory Committee for the 2000 World Congress on Information Technology held in Taiwan in June, 2000; was a member of the Steering Committee for the 2000 Global Internet Summit held at George Mason University in March, 2000; and serves as General Counsel to the World Information Technology and Services Alliance ("WITSA"), General Counsel to the International Trade Association of Northern Virginia, General Counsel to Northern Virginia Technology Council's Political Action Committee and General Counsel to the Virginia Chamber Orchestra.
In addition, Mr. Lewis has extensive experience in representing secured and unsecured creditors in debt restructuring, reorganizations and workouts, both inside and outside of bankruptcies. Having over 25 years of experience in bankruptcy law, he has served as a Panel Trustee in Bankruptcy for the Eastern District of Virginia and is among the few lawyers in Virginia and Washington, D.C. who are certified as specialists in "Business Bankruptcy Law," by the American Board of Certification.
Mr. Lewis received his BA degree in 1968 from the University of Virginia; spent three years as an officer and navigator of a supply ship in the U.S. Navy, homeported in Naples, Italy; and returned to the University of Virginia Law School, from which he received his J.D. degree in 1974. Following law school, he joined the Northern Virginia firm of Boothe, Prichard and Dudley, which subsequently merged with and evolved into McGuire, Woods L.L.P., of which Mr. Lewis was a partner. He joined Holland & Knight, L.L.P. as of August 1, 2000, and currently serves as Executive Partner of its Northern Virginia office.
